Accidents of the Week

Accidents of the Week - May 25, 2024

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 3 People, 1 Dog 35 Miles Offshore

5/13/24 – Clearwater, FL

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

A Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter and a 45-foot Response Boat rescued three people and their dog.

Coast Guard crews rescued three people and one dog on 13 May, after their vessel began taking on water 35 miles west of Clearwater, Florida.

Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders received a distress call through VHF-FM channel 16 around 5:30 a.m. from three people reporting their 47-foot vessel was taking on water. A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter aircrew and Coast Guard Station Sand Key 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boat crew spotted all three people aboard their vessel at approximately 6:45 a.m.

The aircrew deployed their rescue swimmer who swam two people from the 47-foot vessel to the response boat in 5 to 6-foot seas and 10-15 knot winds.

The boat crew retrieved both boaters from the water and transferred two boat crewmen with a Coast Guard P6 pump to dewater the vessel once the sea state improved. Upon boarding the vessel, the boat crew observed that it was taking on water through a broken window. Using a mattress and boat hooks, the boat crew was able to plug and shore the window, effectively stopping the flooding.

Coast Guard Trained to ‘Improvise in Emergencies’

The boat crew escorted the vessel and passengers to Clearwater Harbor Marina around 6:30 p.m. and no injuries were reported. “Coast Guard crews constantly train for shipboard emergencies to mitigate flooding, and part of that training includes improvising in emergency situations,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Jesse, Guitierrez, Coast Guard Station Sand Key operations officer.

“When we saw water filling the lower cabin area through a hole that big, improvise is exactly what we did. I couldn’t be prouder of all our crews today for upholding the highest Coast Guard standard and ensuring the best possible outcome.”

Body Recovered After Attempt to Travel Colorado River on Makeshift Raft

4/21/24 – Coconino Co., AZ

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

Thomas Robinson, 58, and the wooden raft on which he attempted to travel down the Colorado River.

The body of a New Mexico man believed to be Thomas L. Robison, 58, of Santa Fe, was found in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park on 3 May. Robison had been missing for more than two weeks.

Raft Included Plastic Crate for Man’s Dog

Officials believed Robison had attempted to travel down the river on a wooden raft he crafted, with a plastic crate for his 11-year-old Corgi. Park rangers received a tip about a body floating in the river and recovered it.

Robison's 2001 Toyota Tacoma was found abandoned on 21 April at Lees Ferry, a popular launch point for whitewater rafting trips on the Colorado River, the park said.

Man Drowns After Canoe Flips on Massachusetts Lake

5/12/24 – Halifax, MA

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

Technical rescue divers recovered the body of a man who did not resurface after his canoe capsized.

A man drowned on Sunday 12 May in Halifax, Massachusetts, when the canoe he was in capsized, according to Plymouth County District Attorney’s office.

Massachusetts State and Environmental Police, along with Halifax Police, were investigating the drowning, the district attorney’s office wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

According to local news reports, Halifax police went to the area of a boat ramp on White Island Road shortly before 11 a.m., after receiving a 911 call about a capsized canoe and several people in the water.

First responders determined that three people -- an adult and two children -- had safely exited the water, but another adult did not resurface. Divers from the Plymouth County Technical Rescue Dive Team found the man around 12:40 p.m., local news reported.

The man was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth, where he was declared dead. The man’s name was not released.

Man on Solo Camping Trip Found Dead in Water Near Canoe

5/10/24 – St. Louis Co., MN

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

The body of Dr. Mark Ham, 62, was found near a partially sunken canoe in northern Minnesota.

A 62-year-old man on a solo camping trip in northern Minnesota was found dead near a partially sunken canoe, officials told news outlets.

The man, later identified as Dr. Mark Ham of Duluth, Minnesota, was discovered in the water by a group of outdoorsmen at the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) before 5 p.m. on Friday, 10 May, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office told local reporters.

The BWCA encompasses more than 1 million acres of forest, rivers and lakes, as well as 1,200 miles of canoe routes, according to the U.S. Forest Service, which added that the area “offers freedom to those who wish to pursue an experience of expansive solitude, challenge and personal integration with nature.”

Dr. Ham’s family told authorities he had set out to the BWCA alone for a solo canoeing excursion. His body was found close to a capsized canoe, on Lake Agnes, the sheriff’s office said.

Victim Reportedly Not Wearing PFD

Authorities said a life jacket was found but Ham wasn’t wearing it, according to local news reports. “With the opening of the Minnesota fishing season this weekend, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office and Rescue Squad would like to remind everyone to please wear their life jackets while out on the water enjoying their favorite water recreations this summer,” the department said.

Body of Missing Boater Found in Florida Lake

5/13/24 – Lake Co., FL

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

Rescue crews recovered the body of a 64-year-old man who jumped off a boat and failed to resurface.

A missing boater's body was recovered after the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) was joined by the Lake County Sheriff's Office as well as Clermont Police in an hours-long search.

A Lake County spokesperson explained that two swimmers had jumped off a boat on Lake Minneola. One of them came back up from the water, but the other, a 64-year-old man, did not resurface. When he was reported missing, the dive team went searching for him near the Waterfront Park in Clermont.

One eyewitness said everything looked calm on the water just moments before he saw first responders rush to the scene. "All of a sudden, I'm hearing all these sirens coming in, so I'm wanting to see what's going on,” said Sebastian Deonarain. “So later on, I saw the boats and them go in and out, like the police boats. So I think something was wrong."

Some people were in tears at the search, appearing to be family members or friends of the man. FWC said the investigation into the incident was ongoing.

Woman Rescued After Kayak Capsizes in Creek

5/16/24 – Warren, PA

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

After a call for a water rescue, area responders assisted a woman whose kayak had capsized.

A woman whose kayak capsized in Pennsylvania’s Conewango Creek was rescued by area responders on the morning of 16 May.

Around 11:30 a.m., the Volunteer Fire Department in Glade, Pennsylvania, responded to the call for a water rescue. It launched its vessel from Big Four Road within 15 minutes.

Before noon, the rescue was completed successfully with assistance from Russell Volunteer Fire Department and the Warren City Fire Department.

Coast Guard Rescues Man from Aground Sailboat in Virginia Waters

5/9/24 – Smith Point, VA

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

Coast Guard crews assisted a man whose 30-foot sailboat ran aground near Smith Point Lighthouse.

The Coast Guard hoisted a mariner to safety from an aground sailing vessel on the evening of 9 May, near Smith Point, Virginia.

Coast Guard Sector Maryland-National Capital Region watchstanders overheard communications via VHF-FM radio channel 16 with Coast Guard Sector Virginia from the operator of the 30-foot sailing vessel Orion, stating his vessel had run aground near Smith Point in Maryland state waters.

Response Boat Unable to Assist in Shallow Water

The watchstanders issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast, directed the launch of a Coast Guard Station St. Inigoes 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew and a Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, along with local rescue crews.

The station crew arrived on scene near Smith Point and found a sailing vessel lodged aground in shallow water, but due to the depth of water the station crew was unable to assist. The helicopter crew arrived on scene and safely hoisted the mariner from the sailing vessel and transferred him to Rappahannock General Hospital, with no reported injuries.

Ballerina, 15, Killed in Florida Hit-and-Run Boat Crash

5/11/24 – Key Biscayne, FL

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

Ella Riley Adler, 15, was killed in a hit-and-run boat crash while water-skiing off Key Biscayne.

Authorities were searching for a boater who fatally struck a 15-year-old in the Florida Keys on 11 May.

Ella Riley Adler was water-skiing off Key Biscayne near Nixon Beach around 4:30 p.m. when she was struck by a center console boat with a light blue hull that sped away from the scene, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced. 

"She was wearing a life vest, as well as the ski boards on her feet," FWC spokesperson George Reynaud told local reporters, while a first responder reportedly said on radio transmissions that there was "a lot of blood in the water."

The 15-year-old was celebrating a friend's birthday on a family boat at the time of the crash. FWC officers were still searching for the boat's captain, who was traveling westbound from Nixon Beach. "The boat has multiple white outboard motors and may have blue or dark blue bottom paint," FWC said.