Blackened £6m superyacht destroyed by fire is pulled from harbour

A superyacht worth £6m has been hauled from the water after it was destroyed by a massive blaze while moored on a harbour.

The 85-foot yacht Rendezvous was carrying 8,000 litres of fuel when it caught fire and ended up submerged at the bottom of Torquay Harbour on 28 May.

Smoke was seen billowing across the blue skies above the heads of bemused sunbathers in the seaside town in Devon during the huge fire.

Torbay Harbour Authority have been working with a specialist wreck removal company to pull the yacht out of the water ever since the incident.

Divers were in the water on Monday to make the final preparations for the salvage operation and workers spent two days waiting for sight of the yacht.

On Wednesday afternoon a crane was finally used to pull it back up to the surface.

One onlooker said: "Straps were put around the back and front of the vessel to secure it and it has just been brought to the surface, lifted onto a pontoon where it will be taken away.

"It is fair to say, the yacht was not in a good shape and looks completely destroyed. I don't think anyone will be sailing in it anytime soon."

Once the salvage operation is safely completed, repairs to Princess Pier will begin and will reopen to the public once it is made safe.

Warnings were issued about floating debris in the aftermath of the blaze, which included items like gin bottles and cushions from on board the luxury craft, that was built by Princess Yachts in Plymouth, Devon.

Two pollution alerts for the nearest beaches to the marina were also issued by the Environment Agency.

Devon and Cornwall Police and Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service have both stated that they do not hold primacy over the inquiry as to how the fire started, and police have only stated that the fire was "unexplained".