Key West Injury Lawyer Blog
Loved ones of a man, 20, who died in a personal watercraft incident in a Kendall canal spoke with local media to remember him.
The body of Name, of place, was found around Saturday morning in a canal in southwest Miami-Dade County, according to reporting from Channel 10 News. Name was reported as a missing boater to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials around 7 p.m. Friday. His body was found near Southwest 117th Avenue and Bird Road.
Though reporters spoke with loved ones, no name or other identifiers were shared as of Monday.
The man, who loved jet skiing, often went out on the water alone, friends said. One woman described him as having a kind, genuine heart and as someone who made people feel comfortable.
FWC officials are investigating this incident, and no further details have been released.
Leesfield & Partners
In Florida, the hum of personal watercraft and boat engines forms a familiar backdrop to daily life, where the waterways serve as a constant source of recreation. From daily dives, fishing trips, or days soaking in the sun, the ocean is an integral part of life for locals and what attracts tourists year-round. With offices in coastal cities like Key West and Miami, however, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have seen over nearly five decades just how dangerous these activities can be without proper training or education.
In FWC data concerning reportable boating accidents in 2024, it was revealed that Miami-Dade County had the most incidents throughout the state followed by Monroe County. During that time, officials reported 685 incidents with 81 deaths and nearly 400 injuries. personal watercrafts were involved in at least 149 of these incidents, resulting in the deaths of at least 12 people and the injury to 113 others. Shockingly, more than half of operators involved in fatal accidents had no formal boater’s education.
A lack of boater education remains a leading cause of fatal and injury-causing collisions, and Founder and Managing Partner Ira Leesfield has long been steadfast in advocating for proper training on the water. Over the years, Mr. Leesfield and the attorneys at his firm have consistently called for greater accountability across Florida’s tourism and aquatic industries, drawing on their firsthand experience representing grieving families who have lost loved ones in water-related tragedies to shed light on these urgent safety concerns.
“The dangers from boating incidents are entirely underestimated as South Florida becomes more congested, drinking on the water becomes more prevalent and distractions from cell phones and other devices increases,” he said. “Important safety standards must be enforced on all watercrafts.”
In an article discussing such crashes, Partner Justin B. Shapiro explained that no other water-related activity produces more injuries than jet ski crashes. The reason is twofold — not enough people are prepared for the sheer strength needed to maneuver these watercrafts through the waves and, though they are marketed as “beginner friendly,” the reality is starkly different.
“As the summer months yield their inevitable slew of injuries, prospective renters should be aware of the life-threatening dangers of jet skis, and their attorneys should be intimately familiar with the many regulations that were enacted to keep them safe,” he said.
The firm is currently representing a woman who suffered spinal fractures and extensive bruising after she was struck from behind during a guided excursion with her cruise ship — by the very jet ski tour guide leading the outing.
That case is being led by Mr. Shapiro.
Previous Cases
Leesfield & partners’ six skilled trial attorneys have secured numerous multi-million dollar settlements for clients and their grieving families at the hands in nearly five decades.
In the last several years alone, the firm has secured more than $10 million in verdicts and settlements for clients injured as the result of jet ski crashes in the state.
One avoidable death that altered the life of a couple forever resulted from a Key West rental company flouting necessary safety training requirements, as mandated by law. The company failed to ensure that every one of their renters understood the safety tutorial and knew how to operate the personal watercraft that day. A French-speaking renter, who they did not adequately prep, fatally collided with the wife of a Leesfield & Partners client. The company failed to provide their customer with the translation he needed to understand how to use the jet ski.
Leesfield & Partners attorneys were able to secure a multi-million-dollar settlement for the family in that case.
In another jet ski crash, a man visiting from California with his family was seriously injured when he violently crashed into a concrete bridge piling. The man was on a guided jet ski tour with his family at the time. The guides, who are required to prep their customers for the strong currents they would face, led them through a narrow bridge opening and sped far away from them throughout the tour the day the man crashed.
Leesfield & Partners previously represented a jet ski crash victim who suffered serious injuries and obtained a $1 million recovery for that client.
The firm secured a $935,000 recovery for a client involved in a jet ski collision with a boat.
A $900,000 recovery was obtained for a client injured in an accident involving a jet ski company.
A jet ski crash case involving a rental company resulted in a six-figure settlement amount obtained for an injured Leesfield & Partners client.
