One Dead and Two Injured in Fort Lauderdale Boat Crash
This past Saturday evening ended in tragedy when one man was killed and two others were injured in a boating accident in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
According to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers, Dalton Shirley, also known as Dalton French, age 24 of Hollywood, Florida, was killed in the boating accident. Officials say that Dalton was sailing with his girlfriend, Justina Coronel, and friend, Austin Lail. The three were sailing along the Intracoastal Waterway near the Oakland Park Bridge around 8 p.m. Saturday. According to officials, the boat the three were sailing on was traveling along the waterway, side by side with another boat that was carrying six passengers on board. Investigators have not yet uncovered what was going on between the two boats at the time, however, the 20-foot recreational open motor boat that contained Dalton, lost control and slammed into a concrete dock near the 3200 block of Northeast 38th Street. Officials say that Dalton was ejected from the boat. Both Coronel and Lail were injured in the crash and were taken to Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale. Coronel is still in recovery at Broward Health Medical Center being treated for internal injuries and a shattered arm. Lail suffered minor injuries, spent the night in Broward Health Medical Center, and was released from the hospital the next day.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Stewart Ahearn stated, “It’s unknown how fast the vessel was going, but it would have to be traveling at somewhat of a speed to force an individual to be ejected out of the vessel.” Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Spokeswoman Liz Barraco said, authorities would conduct a criminal investigation to determine who was driving the boat, and whether speed or alcohol were factors in the crash. She said there was some indication “there might have been two people operating the vessel.” Barraco continued, stating that the crash happened behind a private home and there was no indication that the open motor boat was attempting to dock. Upon the crash, the second boat holding the six passengers stopped to help. “Someone lost their life, and a lot his friends were there to see it,” Barraco said. “It was very sad.”
A neighbor at the scene of the accident, 21 -year-old Leonardo Rivas, said he was in his house when he heard dogs barking. He went outside to see a young man “covered in blood” attempting CPR on a man who had been placed on the dock behind his house at 3201 NE 38th St. Rivas stated that the injured man had a head wound caused by hitting the sea wall, after the boat struck the concrete dock of the home next door. Rivas said he could see that a corner of his neighbor’s dock was broken off. Rivas said he called 911, and police and paramedics responded within minutes. When Rivas asked friends of the victim what had happened, one told him the occupants of the boats had been “splashing” each other, said Rivas. Dalton’s family has not commented on the tragic loss. Reportedly outside of Dalton’s parent’s Hollywood home, a posted sign reads, “please respect our privacy in our time of mourning.” A family neighbor, Vienna Nesbitt, remembered the young man she says she’d watched grow up, and who played with her grandson before the two young men went off to college. “I’m just sad to hear that.. A boating accident,” Nesbitt says. “I really extend my sympathy to (his mother) Michelle.” The wildlife commission will be leading the investigation, “sifting through all the information so we can find out what led to this,” Barraco said. “There are a lot of pieces, so this is going to be an open investigation for quite a while.”
Sources:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article22768713.html
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-lauderdale-fatal-boat-crash-brf-20150530-story.html
