Florida boating accident

Published on: May 7, 2025

What Sarasota Police Didn’t Find on Out-of-Control Boat Raises Concerns on Important Safety Issue in Florida.

Police in Sarasota chased down a speeding and out of control boat this week, but there was no operator on board to be investigated.

That is because the vessel’s operator, who was not wearing the kill switch, had been ejected when the vessel hit a wake. As a result, the man was thrown into the water without a life jacket as his unoccupied vessel sped off at 40 mph. When the vessel’s operator was thrown off, he broke two fingers but was otherwise uninjured, according to reporting from Fox News.

Fortunately, officers with the Sarasota Police Department’s Marine Patrol were able to catch up with the vessel, hop on and shut it off before anyone else was injured.

Published on: November 8, 2024

One Dead, Four Injured After Florida Keys Boat Crash Thursday, officials say

By Leesfield & Partners

At least four people were injured and one other died after they were ejected from a boat that crashed into a Key West sandbar Thursday afternoon, authorities told reporters with The Miami Herald.

The crash happened around 4 p.m. when a 39-foot Deep Impact vessel carrying at least eight people crashed into a sand bar in North Key West Harbor. Five people were catapulted into the water, officials said, and were taken to the hospital where one person died from their injuries.

Additional details were not immediately available Friday morning.

Published on: September 23, 2024

Florida Divers Break Record in Annual Competition. What to Know About Safe Diving

By Leesfield & Partners

Divers broke records this year in an annual competition to remove invasive lionfish from Florida waters, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission press release.

The 2024 Lionfish Season concluded with a record-breaking 31,773 species being pulled from the water. Just under 300 divers went on over 700 trips throughout the state to retrieve the animals that are dangerous to native fish and coral reefs.

One lionfish can reduce a native reef fish population by over 70%. They also present a risk to humans with their venomous spines which can cause painful stings. In 2022, over 25,000 lionfish were removed from Florida waters in FWC’s annual, summer-long challenge, which began in 2016.