Jacksonville Florida Maritime Lawyers / Florida Boating Accident Attorneys / www.LawBoat.com

Damaged Carnival Ship Triumph Breaks Away From Alabama Dock

2013-04-13T13:05:00.001-07:00

Update: The Coast Guard suspended its search for a missing shipyard employee after a cruise ship broke loose from a pier on the Mobile River, Wednesday.

Coast Guard and Mobile Police and Sheriff's Office search-and-rescue crews searched for approximately 15 hours with more than 15 boats and aircraft in an effort to locate the missing BAE Systems employee.

Carnival Cruise Ship Stranded Gulf of Mexico

2013-02-12T15:20:00.001-08:00

Passengers aboard a cruise vessel stranded in the Gulf of Mexico after a weekend engine fire have limited access to bathrooms, food and hot coffee, but also a new destination: Mobile, Ala.

Carnival Cruise Lines President and CEO Gerry Cahill said in a statement Monday that the Carnival Triumph had drifted so far north of its original position that it will be towed to the southern U.S. port, instead of the original plan to take it to Progreso, Mexico.

Cahill said strong Gulf currents caused the Triumph to drift about 90 miles north of its original position off the Yucatan Peninsula.

Cahill's statement said the ship should arrive in Mobile on Thursday and that the change will allow for less complicated re-entry for passengers without passports.

CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg said on "CBS This Morning" that the waste management system was powered by electricity, and with electricity out on the ship, there is a danger of it turning into "a floating biohazard" before it reaches Alabama.

Three rescued from boat in St. Johns County

2013-01-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

ST. JOHNS COUNTY. Fla. -- St. Johns County Fire Rescue saved three people after a boating accident Tuesday afternoon.
Fire officials say the accident happened around 3:30 p.m. on the shoals just north of the Matanzas inlet.
St. Johns County responded and found an approximately 16-foot fishing boat unmanned in the surf, and a second fishing boat helping two people from the water and one from the sandbar.
According to a news release, one of the victims was having a heart attack and a paramedic/rescue swimmer performed CPR. That patient was taken to Flagler Hospital in critical condition. The boat was later towed and secured by SJCFR marine rescue to a dock at Fort Matanzas.
No one else was injured and all three were wearing personal floation devices, according to SJCFR.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission is investigating the incident.

Connecticut woman died in a parasailing accident in Florida

2012-08-16T10:35:00.003-07:00

A Connecticut woman died in a parasailing accident in Florida Wednesday when she fell about 200 feet into the ocean, authorities said.

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Stephen Miskell and his wife, Kathleen Miskell, 28. She died after falling 200 feet in a parasailing accident off Pompano Beach, Florida.

Kathleen Miskell, 28, was tandem parasailing with her husband offshore in Pompano Beach, Fla., when her harness broke Wednesday afternoon and she fell into the water, city spokeswoman Sandra King said in a statement.
“She fell between 150 and 200 feet face-down into the ocean, and that’s like hitting a brick wall, and the husband unfortunately had to witness it,” Pompano Beach Mayor Lamar Fisher told NBCMiami.com.

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Miskell’s husband, Stephen Miskell, was not hurt, and the boat’s operator reeled him in after Kathleen fell. They found Kathleen face-down in the water and pulled her into the boat too.
They started CPR, called 911 and brought Miskell to the Hillsboro Inlet. Miskell was in cardiac arrest as Pompano Beach Fire-Rescue continued CPR and administered “advanced life support,” according to King.

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An oil tanker collided with a U.S. Navy destroyer near the Strait of Hormuz

2012-08-12T08:54:00.001-07:00

An oil tanker collided with a U.S. Navy destroyer near the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday but no one was hurt and shipping traffic in the waterway, through which 40 percent of the world's seaborne oil exports pass, was not affected, officials said.
"Both vessels are okay and the Strait of Hormuz is not closed, and business is as usual there," an Oman coast guard official told Reuters, declining to be named under briefing rules.
The collision nevertheless left a gaping hole in the starboard side of USS Porter, a guided-missile destroyer suffered, but no one was injured on either vessel, the U.S. Navy said in a statement. The collision with the Panamanian-flagged bulk oil tanker M/V Otowasan occurred at approximately 1 a.m. local time.

Witnesses say small boat crashed into riverboat

2012-07-31T14:26:00.001-07:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A boating accident took place on the St. Johns River in downtown late Saturday night.

According to witnesses who were on the Annabelle Lee river boat, a small leisure boat came up from behind the river boat, hit a dock, and then hit the river boat.

Brooke Kantack was on the river boat and said the crash took place on the river near Metro Park.

"Two people fell out and three people were left on, but one got out and tried to swim to the fellow victims," Kantack recalled.

Kantack said at least one woman from the smaller boat was plucked from the water and pulled onto the river boat. Kantack said she heard the woman say her leg was in pain.

Kantack said she believed the smaller craft was speeding because it passed the river boat so quickly.

Police were on the scene investigating.

Witnesses said no one on the river boat was hurt.

A Packed Boat, a Celebration, a Deadly Turn

2012-07-28T06:59:00.000-07:00

The sky over Long Island Sound, ignited moments earlier by an extravagant Fourth of July fireworks display, was suddenly bright again: a signal flare illuminated a marine disaster unfolding among the boats leaving the show.

2012-07-02T14:10:00.003-07:00

Former astronaut Alan "Dex" Poindexter, 50, a space shuttle commander who flew twice into space, died Sunday after being injured in a water sports accident in Florida.
"The NASA family was sad to learn of the passing of our former friend, and colleague Alan Poindexter who was killed today during a jet ski accident in Florida," NASA wrote on Facebook late Sunday. "Our thought and hearts are with his family."
According to local media reports citing the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, Poindexter was jet skiing with his two sons near Little Sabine Bay off of Pensacola Beach, Fla., when the accident occurred.
"Poindexter and his 21-year-old son were on one jet ski and his oldest son was on another jet ski. Poindexter was sitting still in the water when his [older] son's jet ski came barreling into him," the local ABC affiliate WEAR reported, citing the FWC, which investigates boating accidents.
Poindexter was rushed to Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, where he later died from his injuries.

2012-06-21T10:22:00.000-07:00

Liner Captain Is Questioned in Capsizing Off Italy Coast

Filippo Monteforte/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Rescuers found three people on Sunday on the Costa Concordia, which ran aground off the coast of Giglio, Italy. More Photos »

By GAIA PIANIGIANI and SARAH MASLIN NIR

Published: January 15, 2012

GIGLIO, Italy — The captain of the cruise ship that capsized aground near an Italian island, killing at least five people, may have caused the accident by taking the ship too close to the island’s rocky shore, the owner of the vessel said on Sunday, as rescue workers extracted three survivors and two bodies from the wreck.

2012-06-21T09:58:00.001-07:00

Investigation shows boater inexperience, speed cause of fatal boating accident

3:26 p.m. EST, June 11, 2012

A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigation into one of two deadly March boating accidents in Tavares determined that inexperience and the boater's speed was what caused one boater to die, according to a newly released report.
Mark Van Winkle, 53, of Stuart died after being ejected from his boat and was struck by a passing vessel on March 17 during an exhibition on Lake Dora. The event was part of the Classic Raceboat Association's annual Spring Thunder Regatta. Van Winkle's boat hit the water wrong and he was thrown from the vessel, the report said. He was struck just seconds later and died instantly.

8-year-old Pennsylvania girl killed in Putnam boating accident

2012-03-25T14:49:00.000-07:00

An 8-year-old at a family reunion in Putnam County was killed Friday when the boat she was in lurched under a dock while she was sitting in a seat in the front of the boat. At the end of a St. Johns River boat ride around 6 p.m., the driver missed an attempt to maneuver onto a boat lift then on a second approach the 23-foot bowrider lurched ahead and under the dock. Olivia Wade, of Springdale, PA, was sitting in the seat and hit the dock. She was taken to Putnam Community Medical Center where she was pronounced dead. The accident happened in the 400 block of West River Road north of Palatka. Among six at the reunion, three were from Pennsylvania and three were from Jacksonville, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Federation. Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2012-03-25/story/8-year-old-pennsylvania-girl-killed-putnam-boating-accident#ixzz1qAT302H6

Girl critically injured in boating accident

2011-10-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

TAMPA, Fla. - An 11-year-old girl is in critical condition after a boating accident in North Tampa. Florida Fish and Wildlife officials say the girl was tubing when she was struck by a propeller while climbing onto a boat on Lake Taray. The accident happened behind her home in the Avila community. She was transported to St. Joseph's Hospital. Her name has not been released. The FWC is investigating the accident. Read more: http://www.abcactionnews.com/dpp/news/region_tampa/girl-criticially-injured-in-boating-accident#ixzz1be2qoutr

Boating Accident Victim in Downtown Jacksonville was Fishing, Still Critical

2011-08-30T16:56:00.000-07:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The man who was critically injured in a boating accident on the St. Johns River in downtown Jacksonville was fishing. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), 66-year-old Jacksonville resident Rodney M. Abernethy was anchored east of the center span of the north side of the Fuller Warren Bridge at 5 p.m. Monday in a 17-foot boat. The FWC said the tide at that time was outgoing and very strong, and that the anchor line fouled the propeller. That in turn caused the stern of the boat to face the outgoing tide, which allowed water to pour in, sinking the boat. Abernethy was caught in the current.

Boy struck by propeller / Jacksonville Beach

2011-08-18T15:24:00.000-07:00

A 6-year-old boy who apparently fell under a boat and was struck by its propeller at the Jacksonville Beach city boat ramp was hospitalized this evening with back lacerations, authorities said. The juvenile, whose name was not immediately available, is not thought to have life-threatening injuries, said Sgt. Tom Bingham of the Jacksonville Beach Police Department. Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2011-08-17/story/boy-struck-boat-propeller-jacksonville-beach-hospitalized#ixzz1VQESdlT0

Local Boating Accident/Mother Interviewed

2011-08-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

This is an interview of a mother who lost her daughter in a local boating accident. Dwayne

NTSB Rips Coast Guard over Boy's Boating Accident Death

2011-07-14T14:59:00.000-07:00

The National Transportation Safety Board has called out the U.S. Coast Guard for lax oversight leading up to the 2009 San Diego patrol boat crash that killed 8-year-old Anthony DeWeese. The federal board concluded that the Coast Guard boat pilot was going far too fast — as fast as 42 knots — for the crowded conditions on San Diego Bay that night, and no one was holding him in check. The NTSB discussed its findings at a meeting Tuesday morning in Washington, D.C. A summary written report was released later in the day, and the full report will be published in coming weeks, officials said.

128 feared dead in Russian river boat accident / children lost

2011-07-11T14:44:00.000-07:00

"Practically no children made it out. There were many children on the boat, very many," survivor Natalya Makarova said on state television. She said she had lost her grip on her daughter as they struggled to escape. "We were all buried alive in the boat like in a metal coffin," Makarova said, who escaped through a window. "I practically crawled up from the bottom. My 10-year-old child was with me, I held onto her as long as possible ... I couldn't hold on." Sania Zakirova waited on the shore at Syukeyevo for news of her missing grandson and pregnant daughter-in-law.

Boat Operator Reckless in accident that Killed two Middleburg students

2011-06-14T08:15:00.000-07:00

The boat operator involved in a Presidents Day accident that ended with the deaths of two Middleburg High School students, including his son, has been cited with reckless operation. Ted Hanner, 49, was operating the 1985 Baja bass boat on Black Creek near the Knight's Boat Ramp and Marina facility when he left the controls to pump the fuel bulb, a piece of equipment that helps get fuel to the motor, said Karen Parker, a spokeswoman from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. She said the boat was running kind of ragged and Hanner was trying to get more fuel to the motor. The boat veered to the north bank and crashed into a tree 3 feet off the water, according to commission at the time. Hanner's son, Travis Hanner, 17, and the teen's girlfriend Halee Mickey, 15, were sitting in the bow of the 18-foot, 4-inch boat at the time. The teens died at the scene from severe blunt force trauma, the commission reported at the time. Ted Hanner was treated at Shands Jacksonville hospital and later released. Alcohol was not a factor, and the boat was traveling about 20 mph, Parker said. Reckless operation of a boat is a first-degree misdemeanor. Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2011-06-10/story/boat-operator-reckless-february-accident-killed-2-middleburg-students#ixzz1PGQAgeUt

Man critically injured in Boating Accident

2011-05-25T15:22:00.000-07:00

Law enforcement agencies in north Palm Beach County are searching for a man whom police say was operating a 23-foot boat on the Intracoastal Waterway Saturday night, when it collided with an illuminated channel marker. The impact caused severe head injuries for one of the passengers on board. Kai Woodstock, 26, of Jupiter, who was flown by helicopter to St. Mary's Medical Center after the accident, which occurred around 9:46 p.m., according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Investigators say the boat operator fled the crash scene and had not been located nearly 24 hours later. According to Jupiter police, the boat's operator, 21-year-old Timothy Doran, also of Jupiter, took off on foot after the accident and was still wanted for questioning early Monday. Alcohol was believed to be a factor in the accident, police said.

SEARCH FOR SANDY POINT CREW MEMBERS CONTINUES Three men missing after collision in Gulf

2011-05-21T09:58:00.000-07:00

GULFPORT -- Divers will continue their search today for three missing crew members of an Omega Protein pogy boat that sank in the Gulfport shipping channel after a collision with a ship carrying bananas to Texas.A team of four divers from the state Department of Marine Resources and one from the Biloxi Police Department spent several hours Thursday in the dark, murky waters where the Sandy Point rested 25 feet below the surface, U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Timothy Williams said. DMR Chief Walter Chataginer said the three could have been trapped inside the boat in air pockets that could keep them alive.

Palm Valley Boat Accident

2011-04-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

PALM VALLEY -- A 65-year-old woman was hospitalized after a boat she was riding in slammed into a dock along the Intracoastal Waterway on Saturday, practically two years to the day after a deadly boat wreck killed five people in the same area. Jo Ann P. Valenti of Ponte Vedra Beach sustained head injuries after a 1999 Vessel powerboat smashed into a dock about 2:45 p.m. behind a vacant house at 75 S. Roscoe Blvd., the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office said. Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2011-04-20/story/boat-crashes-palm-valley-dock-two-years-after-deadly-wreck-near-same#ixzz1K6ZzGFln

Texas law firm sued for allegedly filing incorrect Jones Act lawsuit

2011-03-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

A Mexican national is filing a lawsuit against a Texas law firm for improperly filing a lawsuit against his employer causing his workers' compensation benefits to be terminated. Juan Puga filed suit against The Hastings Law Firm and Tommy R. Hastings on March 3 in federal court in New Orleans. According to the complaint, on Sept. 24, 2008, Puga was employed by Fluid Crane and Construction Inc. as a pipe welder when he was injured off the coast of Louisianan while being transferred from a vessel in a personnel basket. The lawsuit claims that Puga was solicited by the Hastings Law Firm within one week of the accident, while he was still in a Louisiana hospital. When he signed an attorney-client contract, he was receiving compensation benefits from Fluid Crane's carrier in excess of $1,000 per week, plus all medical expenses. The Hastings Law Firm filed a Jones Act lawsuit against Fluid Crane in Brazoria County District Court. The Hastings Law Firm argued that Puga was a Jones Act seaman and as a result, Fluid Crane terminated the compensation benefits and began paying him maintenance at $15 per day. Puga states his employer had no exposure to liability as a result of being his employer and his non-seaman status. He states he attempted to contact the law firm about the loss of his benefits but was unable to receive a reply. He terminated their representation in December 2008.

Man's Foot Severed by Boat

2011-03-01T11:22:00.001-08:00

NAPLES — Two days after a boat propeller severed his left foot, a 69-year-old Bonita Springs swimmer remains in fair condition at Lee Memorial Hospital, according to Pat Dolce, a hospital spokeswoman. Rosario ‘Sal’ Pucciarelli was swimming within a marked swimming area near the shoreline of the Ritz Carlton Hotel at Vanderbilt Beach on Saturday when he was struck by a boat, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report. Brandon Ruganis was traveling east toward the shoreline in a 22-foot Pathfinder fishing boat when the boat struck Pucciarelli, according to the report.

Uncle: Gardens girl hit by boat propeller lost part of left leg

2011-02-10T08:14:00.000-08:00

Doctors were unable to save the leg of a 14-year-old girl struck by a boat propeller on Saturday. Gabby DeSouza's leg was amputated below the knee Tuesday, according to news partner WPTV-Ch. 5. The Palm Beach Gardens High School student was airlifted to St. Mary's Medical Center after the accident, and has remained in critical condition since. The teenager and friends were in the water south of the Juno Pier when a boat approached carrying other friends. As she was trying to climb onboard, the driver revved the engine in an apparent attempt to keep the boat from getting beached, according to an eyewitness. The boat hit three of the girls, knocking them down, and the propeller struck DeSouza's leg.

Seaman seeks $5M for wrongful termination after head injury

2011-01-20T13:43:00.000-08:00

GALVESTON - Claiming he was wrongfully terminated after receiving a head injury on the job, a Galveston County seaman is seeking $5 million from his former employer. James Gowdy filed a Jones Act suit against Kinder Morgan Inc. on Jan. 13 in Galveston County District Court. He alleges he was injured on March 24 while working aboard the M/V Audrey. According to the original petition, Gowdy and a co-worker were tightening a mechanical wench when the co-worker lost control of a stainless steel teeter bar. The bar then shot across the deck and struck Gowdy in the head, the lawsuit states. Gowdy claims he recalls nothing after the incident until he woke up five hours later in a Sulphur, La., hospital, the suit says. The suit states that Gowdy sustained contusions and abrasions as well as injuries to his neck, legs and other parts of his body. He says he was unable to maintain his balance after the injury and unable to return to work. Gowdy claims his employment was then terminated. He consequently seeks a jury trial along with the $5 million in damages. The Buzbee Law Firm is representing the plaintiff, and Galveston County 56th District Court Judge Lonnie Cox is presiding over the case.