Accidents of the Week - April 30, 2023
April 28, 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 Found Dead After Falling Off Pontoon Vessel in Florida
4/16/23 – Charlotte Co., FL
A search for a missing man was launched after he fell off a 26-foot-pontoon boat on the evening of 16 April.
According to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), two men were aboard the vessel on the Peace River in Charlotte County, Florida, and one of them fell into the water at around 7:30 PM.
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) identified the missing man as Justin David Riston (46). He was later found dead on the evening of 17 April.
“It’s pretty rare to have someone go missing like that. I wish people were a little safer. Safety gear, life jackets, everything — you know, that’s very important,” said Nathan Cozad, a Port Charlotte resident.
Riston’s body was found around 5:00 p.m. by FWC and partner agencies.
Man Dies in Tubing Accident on Georgia Lake
4/15/23 – Butts Co., GA
A man’s body was recovered by a dive team after an accident on 15 April on Jackson Lake, Georgia.
Butts County Sheriff officials said authorities received reports of a drowning in the area of Kersey Bridge on Jackson Lake. When the Butts County dive team arrived, they located 48 year-old Torey Antonio Domineck of Palmetto, Georgia. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to the investigation, Domineck and his friends were tubing on the lake when he fell off his tube. He was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident.
Father and Daughter Rescued After Personal Watercraft Sinks in Florida Lake
4/15/23 – Thonotosassa, FL
Christopher Snow and his 13-year-old daughter, Alexis were tired and very scared on the night of 15 April after their personal watercraft sank in Lake Thonotosassa in Hillsborough County, Florida.
Christopher's girlfriend, Carolyn Joyce said she didn't hear from the pair so she came to Baker Creek Park to bring them home. But there was no sign of Christopher, Alexis, or their watercraft, so Joyce asked a nearby deputy of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) for help.
HCSO Deputy Kevin Reich called for marine and aviation units to help, but a nearby boater offered to help. They got onboard the good Samaritan's boat and set out to find the Snows. A short time later, the crew spotted them.
Deputy Reich's body camera captured Alexis screaming "Help!" in the distance. "We're coming, baby!" a woman on the boat yells back. When the boat reaches Christopher and Alexis, they're both wearing life vests, but are visibly exhausted. Alexis cries, "Our JetSki sunk underwater!" The boaters throw a rope to the Snows and pull them to the back of the boat. Alexis is pulled aboard first.
As the team pulls Christopher up, he temporarily goes limp, apparently exhausted. The pair had been treading water for nearly an hour by the time they were rescued.
In a statement to the media, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister pointed out that Christopher and Alexis Snow might not have survived the ordeal if they had not been wearing life jackets.
Man’s Body Recovered After Kayaking Outing on Savannah River
4/15/23 – North Augusta, SC
A death investigation was underway in Aiken County, South Carolina, after the body of a missing kayaker was recovered.
According to North Augusta Public Safety and the Aiken County Coroner’s Office, 35-year-old Christopher Tommy Bellamy went out kayaking from Savannah Rapids Pavilion with a friend on the evening of 15 April.
The two paddled downstream until they reached an area of rapids, got out their kayaks and began swimming. Bellamy found himself in distress and started calling for help before going beneath the surface. A witness who heard his cries called authorities around 3:50 p.m. Bellamy’s friend was later located by authorities when he returned to the area looking for him.
Officers of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR) found Bellamy’s body around noon on 16 April, near Indian Rock Court in North Augusta.
College Students, US Coast Guard Help Injured 7-year-old on Boat
4/16/23 – St. Petersburg, FL
Volunteer members of the Search and Rescue team at Eckerd College (EC-SAR), in St. Petersburg, Florida, were the first on the scene to help an injured 7-year-old girl out on a boat on 16 April.
The boat hit a wake and the 7-year-old injured her back. Once U.S. Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg members arrived, the college students continued to assist.
Krista Park, EC-SAR maintenance and operations supervisor, said all of the students in the search and rescue program are volunteers. She said any student at Eckerd is welcome to join but they do have to go through training. “As long as they pass the tests with an average of about 85 percent, they can be here," Park said.
“Through our years on this team we have missed out on certain things with our friends and things like that, but the work we are doing and the skill set this team has taught us is so much more fulfilling," declared Leila Koenig, of the students who responded to the incident.
Coast Guard members said the 7-year-old girl was taken to the hospital and is doing okay.
Coast Guard Rescues 3 Kayakers in Grays Harbor, Washington
4/12/23 – Grays Harbor, WA
The United States Coast Guard rescued three kayakers in Grays Harbor, Washington, on 12 April. The USCG Pacific Northwest said that the kayakers were in distress in the Elk River, near Bay City.
One of the men’s relatives called 911 and a USCG helicopter was recommended due to marsh conditions.
One of the men was showing signs of hypothermia after entering the water, said the USCG Pacific Northwest. He was taken to a hospital in Grays Harbor.
Woman Spends Night Clinging to Tree After Boat Capsizes in Texas River
4/15/23 – Slocum, TX
A woman spent hours clinging to a tree, waiting for help after the boat she was in capsized along a river, Texas authorities said.
It’s not clear how it happened, but the boat “overturned” on the Neches River, near Slocum, on the evening of 15 April, the Slocum Volunteer Fire Department said in a news release. She spent the rest of the night stranded in the dark, holding on to a tree. When the sun finally came up, her husband made his way to a nearby highway, got the attention of a passing driver and contacted 911, the release said.
Crews headed to the scene at 7:32 a.m. on 16 April, officials said. Rescuers went up river on a swiftwater rescue boat and found the woman, who is in her mid-60s, still clinging to the tree. She was brought back to safety and taken to a hospital “for further evaluation,” the release said.
Coast Guard Suspends Search for Last Boater After 3 Found Dead Off New England
4/21/23 - Cape Ann, MA
The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for a fourth missing boater a day after three others were found dead in the waters off New England.
On 19 April, the Coast Guard received a report that the boat was overdue from a family member of one of the boaters aboard the missing 17-foot vessel. The boat had departed Hampton Harbor, in New Hampshire, at about 7:30 a.m. that morning and was due back by sunset, according to the boaters' family members.
The Coast Guard located an overturned boat approximately 7 miles northeast of Cape Ann, Massachusetts, which it confirmed to be the missing boat.
Jia Fu Zheng, 38, and Daxiao Lin, 43, of Quincy, Massachusetts, and Jaime Liu, 42, of Litchfield, New Hampshire, were recovered unresponsive and transported to Station Gloucester, Massachusetts, where they were pronounced dead by local medical examiners. The fourth boater, Bin "Michael" Cai, remains missing, according to the Coast Guard.
A Coast Guard helicopter, plane and two boats were deployed to search for the missing people, the agency said. The Coast Guard had been using the last known position from a cellphone and the location of their anticipated fishing area to develop a search area. Crews had searched for 27 hours covering more than 1,567 square nautical miles.
The Coast Guard was set to conduct an investigation into the deaths, as it was more than 3 miles from shore.
"We extend our deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of these boaters." Capt. Amy Florentino, the commander of the Coast Guard Sector Northern New England, said in a statement.
"The decision to suspend a search and rescue case is one of the most difficult decisions I must make, but we want the public and especially Mr. Cai's family that we did everything in our power to find them. The water temperature in New England at this time of the year dramatically reduces the survivability rate for anyone that enters the water, and we urge all boaters to keep the air and water temperatures in mind when planning their voyages this spring," Florentino said.
4 People in Sinking Boat Rescued Off Juno Beach Pier
4/17/23 – Juno Beach, FL
First responders from several agencies using boats, helicopters and jet skis helped rescue four people aboard a sinking boat at the Juno Beach Pier on the night of 17 April, according to Palm Beach County Fire Rescue (PBCFR), whose responders were assisted by the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office (PBSO), U.S. Coast Guard, and TraumaHawk Air Ambulance.
At approximately 7:50 p.m., PBCFR units were dispatched to the pier where they found a vessel had capsized and was drifting offshore, the agency said in an inquiry. They received reports that one of the four people was unconscious.
The PBSO Eagle helicopter orbited the boat and guided PBFR personnel on jet skis to the area. The PBSO boat then arrived. County sheriff's office and fire rescue personnel got all four people onto the PBSO boat, and they were brought to a dock just inside the Jupiter Inlet, PBFR said.
The Coast Guard arrived and remained at the scene. A patient was brought to Carlin Park, where the TraumaHawk helicopter was waiting. The patient was transferred to the helicopter and brought to a local trauma center. The other individuals involved did not request transport to the hospital, PBFR said.
Three Recovered From Lake Michigan After Boat Flips Over
4/13/23 – Kenosha, WI
A good samaritan helped rescue three people from Lake Michigan after their boat flipped over on the afternoon of 13 April between Kenosha’s Southport Marina and Kemper Center.
Petty Officer Second Class Amberly Rehseld of the U.S. Coast Guard said the small boat flipped over after it began taking on water in rough conditions. Rehseld said the incident occurred shortly before 2:30 p.m. She said a former firefighter she called a “good Samaritan” pulled them onto his boat from the water before the Coast Guard arrived and transported them back to shore.
Rehseld said the three were transported to a local hospital for hypothermia. The temperature of Lake Michigan was 39 degrees. The Kenosha County Dive Team, Kenosha Fire Department and Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department also responded.