Local photographer Martin Bydalek got a fiery start Thursday morning.

“I woke up to the sound of helicopters and looked out and I saw a burning boat on the water,” Bydalek said.

The boat, according to media reports, was the Liberty Call from the Brownsville Marina in Kitsap County.

It drifted into the waters off the western shores of Bainbridge Island near Agate Pass and was soon spotted fully engulfed in flames.

“It was drifting south in the current, and it looked between 32 to 35 feet,” Bydalek said. “It wasn’t a fishing boat, it was a private boat.”

He watched the boat for a short time as it drifted in the water and continued to burn. Aside from a few onlookers, and two news helicopters, no one was around to tend to the fire.

“A fishing boat was nearby for about a good half hour,” Bydalek said. “After about a half hour, a small boat came out and they started dousing it with water.”

Boats from the North Kitsap Fire Department and the Coast Guard responded to the fire. A man was saved from the blaze, though his dog did not survive the fire, according to media reports.

The Bainbridge Island Fire Department did not send its fire boat. Fire Chief Hank Teran said the vessel was not out of service, but was undergoing an upgrade at the time of the fire.