Articles Posted in Boating Accident

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Usually, fights and “road rage” are things heard about on land, but, on Monday, Sept. 28, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called out to an island off the Everglades to stop it from happening on the water.

The incident occurred after a Coast Guard crew called for deputies at around 8:15 p.m. when a violent fight between a man and a woman on a sailboat broke out, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. The incident took place off Cape Sable near Monroe County’s mainland.

Police later found out that a 42-year-old woman hired a boat captain, 51, to maneuver her sailboat, which allegedly measured between 30 to 35 feet, through the Keys. At one point during the trip, the two began arguing before it escalated to physical blows, police told reporters. Both the woman and the captain were charged with misdemeanor battery charges and have since posted bail. They each had non-life-threatening injuries that were “consistent with being in such a fight,” the newspaper reported.

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Snowbirds from up north tend to head south for the winter, and Floridians, especially those residing in Monroe County, cannot blame them.

When addressing the Key West High School Class of 2026 to award the second annual Dexter Butler College Scholarship, Leesfield & Partners’ Founder and Managing Partner, Ira Leesfield, gushed about the uniqueness of a city that attracted the likes of Jimmy Buffet and Earnest Hemingway.

“Here’s the story: Key West is special,” Mr. Leesfield said. “Driving down today, it had to be my three-hundredth trip … I realized why I keep coming back and why we are so honored and privileged to give this scholarship every year.”

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A man who survived a shark attack while swimming off the coast of Key West told reporters the nurses who stepped in to help him were his saving grace.

“I decided to stay positive and then, when I saw the two nurse people come up, they were like angels,” David Daniels told reporters with NBC 6 South Florida.

The incident happened around 5 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 23, near Boca Grande Key in Key West. Daniels was swimming near a recreational vessel, local media reported, and was near the sandbar when he was bitten. A person in his group exclaimed that there was a shark in the water and when Daniels turned to look, that is when the animal “beelined” toward him.

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A woman died after she was ejected from a boat in the Florida Keys over the weekend, according to reporting from NBC 6 South Florida.

The woman, 52, of Hialeah, Florida, was on a 35-foot SeaVee Sunday, Aug. 16 with at least three others, police told reporters. The vessel was traveling north on the Intracoastal Waterway near Tavernier and, as it made a turn, all passengers were ejected into the water.

At least two other people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, the station reported.

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At least three people were in need of rescue during the spiny lobster mini season, an annual two-day window of fishing before commercial traps are set, in Monroe County, according to local media.

On Wednesday, July 29, officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission were on the water after receiving reports about three missing divers in Monroe County. The group was separated from their vessel while diving off of Duck Key in the Middle Keys.

Bodycam footage from the officers posted by The Miami Herald shows authorities as they approached the divers who were bobbing in the water. Some of the divers had tanks strapped to their backs and thanked officers as they were pulled onboard the vessel.

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Every year, thousands of tourists and locals alike wait to dive beneath the surface of the Florida Keys’ sparkling waters during lobster season.

Invariably, however, this highly anticipated, annual event does not come without incident. From arrests for overfishing to more devastating boating accidents, authorities are cautioning divers and boaters to be safe out on the water.

In its latest, publicly available report, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission noted that there were 694 reportable boating accidents in 2025. These incidents resulted in 51 deaths and injuries to 437 people. The agency reported that 67% of fatal incidents in 2025 involved vessel operators without formal boater education.

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A 44-foot yacht was destroyed in a blaze that broke out at a Key Largo marina ahead of the July Fourth weekend, according to officials with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

The fire broke out Thursday at the Anchorage Resort & Yacht Club in Key Largo. Thankfully, MCSO officials reported, no one was on board the boat at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported. The blaze appeared to have been contained to the singular vessel and no further damage was reported.

No cause of the fire has been publicly released. Photos posted online by the MCSO show firefighters battling the blaze and the singed vessel immediately following the fire.

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At least one woman was taken to the hospital, and another person was injured after a boat crashed into a Florida Keys channel over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, according to local media.

The crash happened Sunday, July 5, around 3:20 p.m., reporters with The Miami Herald said. The vessel that the two were on crashed into the Harris Gap Channel Bridge on Sugarloaf Key. At least one other person was aboard the vessel at the time of the crash and was injured, according to Local 10 News.

The woman, whose name has not been released as of Monday, July 6, was taken to a hospital on the mainland for treatment. A spokesperson for the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) told reporters that she had non-life-threatening injuries. It is unclear whether the second person required transport to a local hospital.

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“Florida is the boating capital of the world, but sadly, it is also the boating fatality capital of the world.”

These are the words of Partner Justin B. Shapiro of Leesfield & Partners. With decades of practice representing the injured individuals and grieving families of those involved in some of Florida’s most horrific boating and water-related incidents, our attorneys understand the magnitude of this pressing safety issue. From a young diver and father-to-be whose life was prematurely snuffed out by a negligent boater to the loss of a child’s leg while aboard a vessel, our skilled trial attorneys have seen just about every injury that can occur on the water. With this experience comes an increased vigilance toward the dangers, and the urgency to create positive change.

Last July, when Lucy’s Law—legislation named in honor of 17-year-old Luciana ‘Lucy’ Fernandez, who died in the 2022 Boca Chita boat crash—went into effect, our attorneys applauded the move and saw it as a sign for increased vigilance and safety on the water.

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A 56-year-old man snorkeling near Key West Sunday afternoon died after being found unconscious in the water on Sunday, May 10, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

Benjamin Lee Millspaw, of Belmont, North Carolina, was swimming off Cottrell Key around noon when he was pulled from the water. Millspaw was with a commercial snorkeling company, officials said.

He was taken to the Lower Keys Medical Center and was pronounced dead.

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