On the final day of a dream holiday guests aboard a luxury superyacht sailing off Queensland were jolted awake by crew yelling "fire, fire, fire".
Eight passengers and eight crew were aboard the 41 metre superyacht Seafaris when it caught fire and exploded before sinking off Cape Tribulation, north of Cairns, about 6am (AEST) on Thursday.
An older passenger said the guests were asleep when the alarm was raised.
"One of the crew knocked on the door and said `fire, fire, fire'," the man told reporters in Cairns.
"We just got organised and got in the raft in the water."
The group boarded life rafts and were rescued by a passing container ship that responded to a distress call.
They were then transferred to two smaller boats before being taken to the Cairns marina about noon.
The captain of the container ship says he heard at least two explosions on the yacht, which burnt for about two hours before sinking.
A Cairns coastguard radio operator says everything happened so fast that lifeguards weren't able to reach the Seafaris.
"It all happened that bloody quick," he told AAP.
"We heard about it on the wireless and about 30 seconds later it had sunk."
No one on board was seriously hurt, although two passengers were checked by paramedics.
Harbour pilot Glen Alitt, who brought the survivors into Cairns, said none of the survivors were very talkative.
"I think they're all in a bit of shock," he said.
"They're really lucky the weather conditions are really good."
The McCloy Group, who own the vessel, released a statement saying the fire started in the yacht's engine room.
Jeff McCloy was expected to meet with the captain, crew and guests in Cairns on Thursday.
A Transport and Main Roads spokesman said work to salvage the boat would begin later this week and an investigation would be carried out.
Australian Maritime Safety Authority officers have collected debris from the boat and blasted a light sheen of diesel coming from the wreckage with fire hoses.
The Seafaris, which costs about $120,000 a week to hire, was used for luxury charters for high end tourists along the Queensland coast.
The yacht was equipped with a gym, library, cinema, spa, cocktail bar and had five passenger cabins.
