"Empty a barrel of gasoline over this boat, douse the engine, the cabin, the hatch and the deck. On second thought, pour another barrel of gasoline over this stubborn skiff." Hesitantly, the men followed his orders. The officer lit a bundle of waste and threw it into the cabin of the schooner. Instantly there was a roar, and a sheet of flames covered the doomed boat. The blaze shooting up to the sky reddened the skyline. For a moment it appeared the very ocean was on fire.

Dropping to their knees, Christian nationals pleaded with God that even then He would spare His property. Flares eagerly licked at the cabin, the hatch and the rigging and it appeared that the fire consumed the boat with demonic glee. The major and the crews of the Dadavata and the Jones pulled away from their moorings in the lagoon leaving the condemned boat to its fate.