MONROE COUNTY, Fla. — A 51-year-old woman from St. Petersburg is presumed dead after an early morning yacht fire in the Florida Keys, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) said.
According to MCSO, the woman has been identified as Linda Vella, 51. Authorities are still working to locate her.
Authorities said the fire happened at 12:10 p.m. at 7101 Shrimp Road marina.
MCSO said Vella was in the Keys with her husband, Michael Robson, 58, and her son, Anthony Vella, 21, for lobster mini-season.
The family was on a 70-foot Viking yacht with another family when it caught fire on Wednesday at the Peary Hotel & Marina on Stock Island, authorities said.
Robson and Anthony were airlifted to the Ryder Trauma Center in Miami after the fire; authorities didn't provide information on the extent of their injuries.
The other family, made up of four people, escaped the fire uninjured, MCSO said.
According to authorities, fire crews battled the fire for three hours.
The sheriff's office said its dive team and TowBoat U.S. Crews are helping search for the woman around the hazardous conditions where the boat sank.
The fire is being investigated by the state fire marshal's office and major crimes detectives.
