06-10-13 PILOTTOWN, LA Bayou Blue native dies in boat crash Brad Malcolm, 33, a native of Bayou Blue and 1997 graduate of Central Lafourche High School, died Mon. (06-10) in a boating crash near Pilottown that injured 2 others on his boat, according to Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries. The agency is investigating the incident. He was fishing with friends from Arkansas. Brad's 24-ft. bay boat collided with a 28-ft. oilfield crew boat in Flat Boat Pass around 12:35 p.m., Wildlife and Fisheries officials said. Dennis Prince, 60, of Malvern, Ark., received severe head trauma, according to officials. Corey Prince, 34, of Fayetteville, Ark., received an elbow cut. Brad died on the way to the hosp. Two men on the oil vessel were not injured. A USCG Air Station New Orleans MH-65 Dolphin arrived on scene soon after the crash. A rescue swimmer transferred Brad and Dennis Prince to LSU Interim Public Hosp. The chopper returned to take Corey Prince to the Med. Center of Louisiana at New Orleans. Brad had a wife and small children. He graduated from LSU and worked as a safety coordinator at C-Innovation in Madisonville. Read full story here.
Around 9 a.m. the group that had gone out rock fishing on a recreational fishing boat started taking on water and called the USCG, Harbormaster Scott Grindy said. A rescue boat from the nearby Pillar Point Harbor was dispatched out and was able to get all 6 onto the boat and safely to shore. No one was injured in the capsizing. The boat remainsed Thur. afternoon about 60 ft. under water just outside the harbor.
Some fishing equipment and coolers were salvaged from the sinking boat. A few portable gas tanks were also removed from the vessel. Read full story here.
06-11-13 MANASQUAN, NJ 300-pound mako shark jumps into fishing boat off New Jersey coast A 303-lb., 8-ft., 4-in. mako shark jumped onto a fishing boat off the coast of New Jersey on Tue. (03-11). Three men were on board the 31-ft. boat at the time. They had been catching and releasing blue sharks all day. The winds calmed down so the group fished an area just outside of the Manasquan River, near the state’s central coast. The shark took the line on the boat's deep line. Moments later, the shark shot 15 ft. into the air several times, and eventually landed in the boat. "It was epic. He back-flipped right in," Clint Simek, one of the fishermen, said. Capt. Tom Rostron, Jr., said the shark was violently thrashing and eating broom sticks and speakers in the front of the boat. The men feared the shark would come at them. "We stood in the back for ½ hr. before I gaffed it and Clint tied the tail. Then we wedged it into the side of the boat." Roston said that the damage to his boat will cost $5,000 to fix.
"I would like to leave the teeth marks in, like a badge of honor," he said. "But the floor marks have to be fixed or water will leak through. They have to be filled and fiberglass has to be re-applied." Read full story here.
06-11-13 LONG BEACH, MI DMR officer rescues fishermen from boat mishap near Long Beach A marine patrol officer rescued 3 S. Mississippi fishermen whose boat capsized in the Mississippi Sound. Jarrord Ladner of Long Beach and Jaden Schmalzried of Gulfport were about 1.5 mi. S. of Long Beach in a recreational fishing boat on Tue. (06-11), said Jamie Miller, executive director of the Mississippi Dept. of Marine Resources. DMR heard a distress call on a VHF radio about 4:30 p.m. Officer Scott Anderson found the men in 4 min. or less, Miller said. Anderson took them to the Long Beach Harbor, where friends were waiting for them. The men were not injured. Read full story here.
06-12-13 LENOIR CITY, TN Fishermen rescue 3 after boat capsizes below dam Three people who were thrown into water when their boat capsized near Ft. Loudoun Dam have been rescued by fishermen. 38-y/o Dustin Hooper of Madisonville, 36-y/o Brandy Runyon and 5-y/o Bralynn Runyon were all wearing lifejackets and escaped with only minor injuries Wed. evening (06-12). The 3 were treated at a local hosp. and released. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency says the 3 were fishing below the dam when turbulence from the water spilling over the dam began pulling the boat into the spillway. Hooper wasn't able to get the motor started, and the boat eventually capsized. TWRA advises caution, saying waters below dams are turbulent, especially when water is being released. Read full story here.
06-09-13 KAILUA-KONA, HI 3 adults rescued after boat runs out of fuel off Kailua-Kona Three adults were rescued in waters off the Big Island on Sun. (06-09) after their boat ran out of fuel. According to the USCG, the boat was approximately 21 mi. NW of Kailua-Kona. A CG air crew arrived to the scene at 5:15 p.m. and was able to establish communication with the boat’s captain. Shortly after 7 p.m., a CG response boat crew took the vessel in tow and returned them safely to Kawaihae Harbor. The CG wants to remind boaters to be aware of their vessel’s fuel capacity and other limitations while operating off shore. Read full story here.
06-12-13 SAN JUAN ISLANDS, WA Capsized kayakers rescued by whale-watch boat Jerry Kim's and Dave Bradley's 2-person chartered kayak capsized after it was turned sideways by a strong eddy and into an oncoming wave from a freighter. "When we went over, my first thoughts were to get back into the overturned kayak; after struggling for several minutes, we were able to get back into the kayak but it was full of water and we had no pump", said Bradley.
"We were in the water almost 20 min. and were almost ready to swim to shore when we are pulled out of the water by this whale watch boat." added Kim. Crew from the whale watch boat, Peregrine, pulled the 2 Sammamish, Washington men from the water. Once safely aboard, local naturalist Jeanne Hyde applied blankets and first aid. One of the rescued lost feelings in his fingers and was hypothermic and showing signs of confusion. "I had seen them from very far away get pushed by the current and wave and immediately secured my passengers and hit the throttle. We backed into them, killed the engines and all of us lifted them aboard", said Capt. Domico. who was the captain of the Peregrine at the time.
Another marine broadcast was made by the Peregrine to notify San Juan Co. responders to meet the victims and passengers at Snug Harbor Resort. One of the first responders was working close to Snug Harbor, heard the broadcast on his radio, and met the Peregrine at the dock to assist the victims until further assistance with equipment could arrive. The Sherriff's Dept. rescue team were first on the scene to be followed by SJC EMT team and ambulance. Read full story here.
06-09-13 LIVINGSTON PARISH, LA 6-year-old girl in critical condition after Sunday boat crash on Natalbany River A 6-y/o girl suffered what officials are calling major head trauma after being on a boat that crashed into trees on the Natalbany River on Sun. (06-09). The Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries said the girl was flown via helicopter to Our Lady of the Lake Hosp. in Baton Rouge where she is still listed in critical condition. The accident happened around 4:45 Sun. afternoon when a 22-ft. ski boat with 5 passengers hit trees along the bank of the river 3 mi. upstream from where it merges with the Tickfaw River. Authorities said the operator of the boat suffered a broken foot. The other passengers were treated for minor injuries. Read full story here.
Kevin Baskins of the Iowa DNR says 2 jet skis collided on the Cedar River, near Ellis Park in Cedar Rapids, at around 7 p.m. Wed. According to the Cedar Rapids FD, a bystander, 26-y/o Dillon Heisuis, heard cries of help coming from the water and called 911. Heisuis found 2 men in their 50's lying in the water near 2 jet skis. One man was found unconscious, and received medical treatment from bystanders and Cedar Rapids police officers on the scene. He was taken to St. Luke's Hosp. in serious condition.
The other man was conscious when rescuers removed him from the water, but he was also taken to St. Luke's. Baskins identified the men as 53-y/o Michael Scott Paulsen and his brother, 56-y/o Gary Paulsen, both of Cedar Rapids. Baskins says Michael Paulsen died at the hosp. The accident is still under investigation. Read full story here.
06-11-13 KNOXVILLE, TN Man on jet ski dies at Knoxville park A man was taken to the hosp. Tue. evening (06-11) following an incident involving a jet ski on Fort Loudon Lake. According to Sgt. Roy Smith of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Jacob Thompson, 39, was seen in distress while launching his jet ski at Carl Cowan Park. A couple of bystanders pulled him from the water unconscious and performed CPR until medics arrived. He was taken to UT Med. Center, where he was pronounced dead. TWRA said officials said the incident did not appear to be an electrocution, but they would not make an official determination until the investigation is complete. An autopsy is being performed to determine his cause of death. "We had some witness statements that electricity could have been a factor," Sgt. Smith said. "We're doing some tests on the area. We will be in contact with the utility board, as well as we have an engineer en route to test the water and test some of the circuits around the water." Read full story here.
06-05-13 PIERCE COUNTY, WI Investigation continues into boat crash that killed 1, injured 2 An investigation may determine why, but what’s known is that a speedboat driver on the St. Croix River somehow lost his bearings. Instead of continuing north, Patrick Puhalla, 46, of Bayport, Minn., got turned to the east. His pleasure cruise on the river with 2 buddies ended when his boat slammed into a vertical rock face on the shoreline of Kinnickinnic State Park just before midnight Wed. (06-05). Puhalla and Daniel Schulte, 55, of Hudson were seriously hurt. They were discovered and rescued by 2 Minnesota men out fishing that night. The fishermen also ferried the first emergency responders to the disabled boat site. A 3rd man in the crashed Formula 400 SS Powerboat -- David Riley, New Richmond -- was later pronounced dead at the scene by the Pierce Co. medical examiner. Efforts to revive him failed. Pierce Co. Sheriff’s Investigator Tom Gunderson said the big question is how Puhalla became so disoriented that his N-bound boat went E. The 3 men in the 2005 powerboat had left Prescott earlier that night. “The boat ran pretty squarely into the rock face for whatever reason and it was going at a good speed,” Gunderson said. An investigation may also pinpoint exactly how fast the powerboat was traveling. That type of boat can attain speeds of 60 mph. Gunderson confirmed there was alcohol in the boat but couldn’t say yet if it was a factor in the crash. “We have to wait until the toxicology results come back for the boat operator,” he said, adding those are sent to the state crime lab in Madison and can take months to return. Gunderson said it didn’t appear the crash was the result of reckless boat maneuvers or stunts. He said in summer there’s a fair amount of boat traffic on the St. Croix River, including fishermen, at all hours, even late at night. The powerboat was equipped with electronic navigational features like radar and night vision displayed on a mounted screen. The electronics will be inspected as part of the overall crash investigation. After the boat hit the rocky shore, it took in water through several big holes in the bow and underneath while it drifted downstream. The 3 men were knocked around inside but not thrown from the boat. Of the 2 who survived, one was conscious and the other was semi-conscious. A salvage company was contacted the day after the crash. A barge with 2 cranes extracted the damaged powerboat, pumped out all the water, winched it from the river and brought it to the closest marina, in Afton, Minn. From there the boat was taken by semi on a trailer bed to the sheriff’s dept. impound lot in Ellsworth. Puhalla and Schulte were taken to Regions Hosp. in St. Paul. Gunderson said Puhalla was the more seriously hurt. Schulte was briefly interviewed by law enforcement and has since been released from the hosp. Read full story here.