CHARLOTTE AMALIE – A 77-foot mega yacht reportedly worth $2.4 million went up in flames while it was docked in St. Thomas.

Virgin Islands Fire Services firefighters and police were called to the luxury vessel Positive Energy after locals spotted it ablaze while moored in the Charlotte Amalie harbor on Tuesday afternoon.

The dramatic fire sent thick black plumes of smoke up into the air visible from some distance on the capital island.

Despite their best efforts, fire crews struggled to extinguish it for several hours.

St. Thomas District Fire Chief Oral Wheatley reported that as of 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday that the fire that destroyed the luxury yacht “Positive Energy” had all but been extinguished.

The U.S. Coast Guard then dragged the yacht to a more remote location.

The blaze, which caused traffic disruptions and generated a great deal of smoke in the downtown area, started Tuesday afternoon while docked at the Yacht Haven Grande Marina in Charlotte Amalie Harbor.

St. Thomas firefighters spent several hours fighting the fire from the shoreline, after the vessel had been positioned to avoid damage to surrounding marine assets, to include several cruise ships in the vicinity.

Chief Wheatley said there were no injuries associated with the fire. He also indicated that vehicular traffic along the St. Thomas waterfront was again flowing normally after having been re-routed away from the blaze.

“I am proud of the effort made by our firefighters and other responders today,” Acting Governor Osbert Potter said. “By containing this fire to the one vessel where it apparently started we averted what could have been a tragedy and, most importantly, no one was injured.”

The yacht, previously named Pomboo, sold for $2,398,300.50 in 2014, according to published reports.