Accidents of the Week – April 15, 2023

15 April, 2023

BoatTEST publishes “Accidents of the Week” as a public service for our VIP Subscribers to acquaint them with potential boating dangers and by inference their prevention.

Man Drowns While Boating on Alabama’s Lake Logan Martin

4/1/23 – Pell City, AL

A 32-year-old man from Vestavia Hills, Alabama drowned on 1 April in Lake Logan Martin. Alabama State Troopers identified the drowning victim as Alvin D. Nash Jr.

Trooper Sgt. Jeremy Burkett said authorities responded to the scene about 12:45 p.m., north of Stemley Bridge in the Mays Bend area of the lake, after Nash reportedly jumped from a boat into the water and did not resurface. A search was launched immediately, and Nash’s body was recovered just after 7:30 p.m. near where he initially entered the water.

The search and recovery operations were a joint effort that include the Pell City Police Department, Pell City Fire Department, St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office, Randolph County Rescue, Childersburg Rescue, Pell City Dive Team, Leeds Fire Department, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Dive Team, and troopers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Marine Patrol Division. The authorities were investigating the incident.

Good Samaritan Rescues 3 Boaters After Sailboat Catches Fire in Mobile Bay

4/2/23 – Mobile, AL

A sailboat caught fire in Mobile Bay on the afternoon of 2 April, according to a release from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA). According to the release, around 3:10 p.m. a “marine-related incident” occurred that involved a sailboat catching on fire.

Boaters Rescued by Good Samaritan

Members from the ALEA Marine Patrol Division, the United States Coast Guard and the Mobile Fire Rescue Department responded to the fire.

According to further information released by officials with Mobile Fire Rescue Department, there were three people onboard the boat, who abandoned it once the fire started and

were picked up by a good Samaritan. The boaters were uninjured and were transported back to a local marina.

Eight Rescued After Boat Sinks in Chesapeake Bay

4/1/23 – Portsmouth, VA

The Coast Guard responded to a report of eight people in the water in central Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, on the afternoon of 1 April.

Coast Guard Station Milford Haven received notification from Lancaster County that the crew of the Nauti Dream, a 50-foot Carver Yacht, had contacted 911 to report their vessel was taking on water. The vessel hailed the Coast Guard on VHF-FM channel 16 but did not respond to Coast Guard callouts.

A position from the reporting source’s cell phone was located near Buoy 62 in the Chesapeake Bay. Local police dispatched Smith Point Sea Rescue from Crockrell’s Creek.

While en route, the responders received notification that the boat had sunk and all eight people were now in the water. Coast Guard Station Milford Haven launched a 29-foot response boat and established communications with the eight people in the water via handheld radio, while the mariners shot off flares and vectored rescue craft to their position, enabling Smith Point Sea Rescue to recover all eight people in the water.

Lifejackets, radio helped ensure boaters’ survival

All mariners were reported to be in good condition and were transported to Ingram Bay Marina where Emergency Medical Services awaited. Two mariners were treated for hypothermia, and all eight were released in stable condition.

“The maritime environment is inherently dangerous, which is compounded with severe weather and cold water temperatures,” said Lt. Joe Bannon, search and rescue mission coordinator, “This case highlights the importance of having necessary gear and training to survive until help arrives.

The fact that they were wearing lifejackets, had a handheld radio, and were able to signal responding craft with flares allowed these mariners to return home to their friends and families.”

Laredo Fire Department Responds to Jet Ski Accident in Local Lake

4/3/23 – Laredo, TX

A man was injured in a jet ski accident at Lake Casa Blanca, in Laredo, Texas. According to the Laredo Fire Department, the incident happened on 3 April at around 7:30 p.m.

Paramedics with the fire department responded to reports of a jet ski accident in the lake and launched a rescue boat. According to the fire department, a man and a woman were riding separate jet ski bikes and collided into each other.

Fortunately, both victims were wearing life jackets at the time and managed to swim to shore on their own. The man sustained minor injuries. and both victims refused to be transported to the hospital.

Missing Kayaker’s Body Recovered from Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Reservoir

4/1/23 – Clay Co., TN

More than 21 hours after a kayaker was reported missing in Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Reservoir, first responders recovered his body on the evening of 2 April, marking the sixth boating fatality of the year, according to local officials.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) said 31-year-old Benjamin Thomen, of Overton County, was camping with three other people at a campground on one of the islands. He was last seen by the members of his group when he left to paddle to the Willow Grove Marina for supplies, according to officials.

However, when Thomen didn’t return to the campsite, the others started asking around at the marina.

The agency said Thomen was reported missing around 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, 1 April, about five hours after he was spotted by an angler near Goat Island. Teams reportedly conducted a perimeter search using thermal imaging, but the operation was suspended Saturday night due to safety concerns.

Kayaker not wearing PFD

Officials said they resumed the search at 7 a.m. on Sunday, 2 April, with teams assigned to the shoreline and banks covering a large area. Meanwhile, crews brought in side-scanning sonar, a remote operated vehicle (ROV), and a Tennessee Highway Patrol helicopter for assistance.

The TWRA said Thomen’s kayak was found around 9 a.m. Then, just before 5 p.m., Thomen’s body — which the ROV discovered in 13 feet of water near Big Goat Island — was recovered and brought to the medical examiner’s office, according to the TWRA. Thomen was not wearing a life jacket, officials reported.

1 dead, 1 in Critical Condition After Attempted Rescue of Kayaker in Ice-Cold Lake

4/5/23 – Auburn, WA

A man believed to be in his mid-30s lost his life after his kayak flipped on an ice-cold lake in Auburn, Washington, while a good Samaritan who tried to rescue him was left in critical condition.

911 dispatchers received the call around 5 p.m. on 5 April from Fivemile Lake, a small neighborhood lake in Auburn. "It was a single person in a kayak-type vessel that overturned. People on the shore and other boaters saw that happen, and a person on the shore ran over, got into the water, went to perform a rescue, ended up struggling in the water," said Pat Pawlak, Division Chief and spokesperson for Puget Sound Regional Fire Authority.

Authorities believed that man had drowned in part because the water is near freezing -- about 45 degrees on the surface alone. He did not have a pulse, Pawlak said, when a bystander started performing CPR until crews arrived.

“When firefighters arrived, there were some bystanders who actually were able to bring one person out to the shore," he said. The person was the good Samaritan. "Firefighters quickly assessed that person. They started performing CPR on that gentleman.”

He was resuscitated and airlifted to Harborview Medical Center, where he was admitted in critical condition. But the kayaker was still missing. After two hours of searching, crews found him dead just after 7 p.m.

Local official: Use of PFD essential in near-freezing water

“They were able to remove that gentleman from the lake. That person is deceased," said Pawlak. With water this cold in Washington lakes, rescuers urged the public to use caution and to always wear personal flotation devices.

Division Chief and spokesperson for Puget Sound Regional Fire Authority Pat Pawlak said falling into near-freezing water can shock your body, severely impairing your ability to function.

“You start losing functions of your hands and your feet, your arms and your legs,” Pawlak said. “You’re trying to stay afloat because you do not have a flotation device, and you can’t use your hands and your legs and so on, then in reality, it’s really hard to stay afloat.”

Pawlak advised people to make sure they always had safety gear at the ready when they prepared to go out into the water, and if they saw someone struggling, to make sure that they were safe before trying to help someone else.

“Instead of going out if you’re not trained to try to rescue somebody, the best thing to do is to try to have them grab something, whether it’s a branch or your arm, where you can brace yourself to pull them in, or to throw something such as a flotation device,” he said.

Capsized Vessel Found, Search For Missing Boater Continues in Puerto Rico

4/5/23 – Culebra, PR

The boat belonging to a missing man was found, however the search continued for the man in question. The U.S. Coast Guard said Roy Moreno Negrón, 30, was last heard in a call with Coast Guard watchstanders reporting that his boat had capsized on Wednesday.

Watchstanders said they were in communication with Negrón's girlfriend, who informed crews that he had driven from San Juan to Fajardo, Puerto Rico, to get underway and vacation in Culebra Island. She told crews that he is 6'2", weighs 230 pounds, wearing a bright floral shirt with shorts, and is an excellent swimmer.

In his call to watchstanders, Negron said he was the sole person onboard and was wearing a life jacket. Air and surface crews scoured the waters near Culebra in Puerto Rico and eventually, the 17-foot boat was spotted 11 miles west from the coast. Unfortunately, the search for Negrón was ongoing.

Alaska Man Collides With Navigational Marker, Sustains Injuries

3/24/23 – Petersburg, AK

Alaska Wildlife Troopers reported that a boater from Petersburg was rescued from his 18-foot Lund skiff, which had crashed and become lodged in a tripod navigational marker in the Wrangell Narrows on the afternoon of 24 March.

The boater, identified as 51-year-old Harry Musewski, who was traveling southbound in the narrows when he collided with the marker, suffered injuries and was trapped, while his boat was stuck in the tripod marker in the rising tide.

Fortunately for the victim, local residents James Greenfield and Steven Miyaki heard the collision and saw Musewski’s dilemma, before responding to the collision site. The good Samaritans were able to remove Musewski from his boat and transported him to Papkes Landing where EMS assisted and transported him to the hospital. Musewski’s boat was later retrieved from the marker.