Accidents of the Week

Accidents of the Week - May 18, 2023

Accidents, Boat Wrecks, MOB, Crew Save, USCG, Sailors Stranded, Left at Sea

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.

Coast Guard Rescues Fishermen Off South Carolina Coast

5/3/24 – Georgetown Co., SC

Accidents of the week, Boat Fire, Grounding, USCG, Drowinings, Rescue Efforts

A Coast Guard crew rescued two people on a disabled 24-foot fishing boat off the South Carolina coast.

The U.S. Coast Guard assisted two people aboard a broken-down fishing boat off the coast of Winyah Bay, South Carolina.

Crews with U.S. Coast Guard Station Georgetown were requested to assist a disabled 24-foot vessel that was located 73 miles off the coast on Friday 3 May. A U.S. Coast Guard Station Georgetown crew transported the 24-foot disabled vessel to East Bay Public Ramp, officials said.

“We recommend all mariners to conduct a vessel safety check or contact your local U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary unit to ensure your vessel is safe to take out on the water,” Petty Officer 2nd Class Haywood, a Station Georgetown coxswain on the case, said.

“The two mariners had a VHF-FM marine grade radio onboard their vessel that allowed them to call out to U.S. Coast Guard Sector Charleston and request assistance,” Haywood added. Nobody was reported hurt in the incident.

One Injured in Boat Accident at Iowa Lake Marina

5/3/24 – Saylorville, IA

Accidents of the week, Boat Fire, Grounding, USCG, Drowinings, Rescue Efforts

A person was hospitalized with propeller lacerations after falling out of a boat while entering a slip.

One person was injured in a boat accident on the afternoon of 3 May at the Saylorville Lake marina, in Iowa.

A spokesperson from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources told local reporters that a boat was attempting to enter a slip when one person fell out and was struck by the boat.

That person was taken to a local hospital with lacerations to their arm from the boat's prop.

Boater Without PFD Jumps into Lake After Lost Hat, Vanishes

5/4/24- Maricopa Co., AZ

Accidents of the week, Boat Fire, Grounding, USCG, Drowinings, Rescue Efforts

A boater not wearing a PFD went missing after jumping into Arizona’s Lake Pleasant to recover a lost hat.

A search continued for a man who jumped from a boat into Lake Pleasant after a lost hat, Arizona sheriff’s officials told news outlets.

The man, who was not wearing a life jacket, never resurfaced, Maricopa County sheriff’s officials told KDVR. He vanished around 2 p.m. on Saturday 4 May, the sheriff’s office told local reporters.

Lake Pleasant is about a 45-mile drive north of Phoenix, Arizona.

Abandoned Boat in Mississippi River Leads to Discovery of Body

4/30/24 – New Madrid, MO

Accidents of the week, Boat Fire, Grounding, USCG, Drowinings, Rescue Efforts

Arkansas officials found the body of boater Bruce Shockley, 76.

The body of a missing boater was found in the Mississippi River days after he went missing, police reported.

On April 30, authorities received a 911 call about an abandoned boat found in the Mississippi River in New Madrid, Missouri, according to a Facebook post by the New Madrid County Sheriff’s Department. Officials found an abandoned truck and trailer at a boat ramp and determined the truck and boat belonged to Bruce Shockley. Rescue teams searched for Shockley by water and air for several days, officials said.

On Saturday 4 May, Arkansas conservation officials notified authorities of a body found in the water near Blytheville, Arkansas, according to officials. The Mississippi County Coroner later identified the body found as Shockley. A cause of death was not released.

Blytheville is in northeastern Arkansas, near the Missouri state line.

Coast Guard Rescues Distressed Boaters in Lake Huron

5/4/24 – Bay Co., MI

Accidents of the week, Boat Fire, Grounding, USCG, Drowinings, Rescue Efforts

Following reports of a sunken vessel, two boaters were rescued from Lake Huron by the Coast Guard.

Several U.S. Coast Guard sectors worked together to rescue two people in Lake Huron’s Saginaw Bay on Saturday 4 May.

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit, U.S. Coast Guard Station Saginaw River, and Bay County 911 Central Dispatch coordinated to make the rescue, after the Detroit sector received a report from Bay County Dispatch of a sunken vessel with two people in the water near Shelter Island.

Boaters Suffering from Hypothermia

Bay County resources and a Scheduled Mission Station (SMS) Saginaw River launched to help in the recovery. Dispatch was able to coordinate with the distressed boaters to accept an i911 location share to get the exact GPS location of them and their boat.

SMS Saginaw River arrived at the scene and rescued both people. The two were suffering from hypothermia, according to SMS Saginaw River. They were taken to the DNR boat ramp and transferred to EMS.