Fisherman survives terrifying fireball after onboard explosion

One moment, Connor Gecewicz and three friends were heading out for a fishing trip. The next, a suspected fault during a routine safety check triggered what he describes as a “tornado” of flames.

“All I remember is the fire hitting me in the face and I immediately dolphin dived off the side of the boat. . . it was my immediate instinct to jump into the water,” says Gecewicz, speaking from his hospital bed in a North Carolina burn centre.

He’s currently recovering from burns to more than a third of his body after the fire which happened on a Memorial Day trip (25 May 2026).

The incident occurred during a safety check as he, and three friends, headed towards the ocean. According to local news, Gecewicz noticed that the bilge pump had stopped working. As he went to check it out, a spark ignited a “tornado” of flames.

Friends acted fast to extinguish onboard blaze

As soon as he was hit by flames, Gecewicz jumped into the water. He says his friends immediately turned off the ignition and put the fire out with the onboard extinguisher.

“I’m happy to be alive, honestly,” Gecewicz says.

“There’s a lot of things in our lives that you can’t control. But there’s one thing you can stay in control of and that is your attitude and how you react to things. . . you can always have a good attitude.”

Rescue, recovery and a long road ahead

After being rescued by another vessel, Gecewicz is now focusing on recovery.

His family has set up a gofundme page to help cover his hospital bills. It details that after the explosion on his boat, Gecewicz suffered second-degree burns to his face, arms, and chest. Approximately 25 per cent of his body has been affected by burns.

“We’re incredibly thankful that he’s already making great progress, but he still has an extended stay at the hospital and a long road of recovery ahead. In the upcoming days, Connor will also undergo surgery as part of the process to repair and heal his skin,” says his family who have set a target of $24k.

Incidents like this are a reminder that onboard fires rarely begin as dramatic events – they start with a small issue and escalate rapidly. As boats become increasingly sophisticated, formal handover processes and stronger safety-management expectations reflect a wider recognition that reducing onboard risk depends not only on engineering, but also on operational understanding. The expectation is not just to deliver products, but to support safer ownership through systems, training and clear communication.