A 35-foot sailboat motoring through a narrow portion of Bull Neck Creek in Dundalk came close but the mast never touched the overhead power lines, but it was close enough to catch fire.

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Electricity arched onto the mast of a sailboat that passed under power lines Thursday night, causing an explosion. Three people had to jump overboard to escape the flames.Mobile users tap here to watch videoWhat area residents found most frightening is the fact the sailboat's mast never actually came in contact with the power line.Ed Morris and a bunch of his neighbors witnessed the incident."It blew up first then caught on fire and we were yelling to anybody in there to jump out," Morris said."There was another little boat right there. Some guy came up near them and we were trying to say, 'Are you going to help them?' The other guy just went away and we were telling the other guys to 'jump, jump, jump' because the fire was just going on the boat," said Cheri Fouts, a witness."I was sitting inside and heard the boom go off. The kids were outside, so I ran outside and thought first maybe this tree fell, then I saw the mast had been sheared off the boat," said Ed Mustachio, a witness.A 35-foot sailboat motoring through a narrow portion of Bull Neck Creek in Dundalk came close but the mast never touched the overhead power lines, according to Baltimore Gas and Electric. But it was close enough for electricity to arc over and shimmy down the mast. Witnesses said they heard an explosion before seeing flames climbing up from the bottom of the vessel."They said they were fine. Then they jumped off and swam to shore on the other side of the park," Mustachio said.A medevac helicopter was called in and paramedics took two of the passengers to Johns Hopkins Bayview Hospital. Baltimore County police said the victims suffered minor injuries. A third person on board declined medical treatment."You heard the biggest loud bang, just like it happened five years ago when it did it before. Same time, same place," Fouts said.In 2009, the mast of a sailboat actually struck a high-tension power line and electrocuted a 63-year-old passenger, sending him overboard. Three others, who were not injured, jumped into the water. The incident left 15,000 BGE customers without power for six minutes that day."I think what they need to do is put a buoy a marker out there stating power lines," Morris said.Baltimore County police have not finished working on their incident report, so no other details regarding their investigation are available.