Personal Injury Law

Man, pregnant daughter killed in Florida boating accident on Memorial Day

By Lipcon, Margulies & Alsina, P.A.

PONCE INLET ? A busy Memorial Day holiday at the beach along Volusia County turned tragic when two boats collided in Ponce Inlet, killing a DeLand-area man, his adult daughter and the woman's unborn baby.

The crash occurred when a 25-foot boat ran over the top of a smaller boat at about 4 p.m., said Joy Hill, a spokeswoman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which is investigating the crash.

All of those killed were aboard the smaller boat, a 17-foot 2006 Sundance, Hill said.

She identified the three victims as Cyril J. Holley Jr., 46, his daughter, Madison Holley, 19, and her unborn child. Both lived at the same address on Hontoon Road near DeLand.

Hill did not know the gender of the unborn baby, but said the child was "just weeks away from being born."

Three people told officers they were injured. Two of them were admitted to Bert Fish Medical Center in New Smyrna Beach, she said. Neither their names nor the extent of their injuries was released. The third person who was hurt refused treatment, Hill said.

It was not known which of the boats the injured where aboard.

There were seven people aboard the smaller boat and six on the other vessel, a 25-foot 1989 Chaparral, Hill said.

All of them were either related or knew each other, Hill said. "It's very, very tragic," she said.

Investigators are looking into the possibility that the wake from another boat might have contributed to the crash, said Hill, adding that fatal boating accident investigations "often take months to complete."

The crash occurred in the Intracoastal Waterway, "right across from the Coast Guard station," Hill said. It was just south of Disappearing Island, she said.

Disappearing Island is an area that forms from sandbars when the tide goes out, said Capt. Scott Petersohn of the Volusia County Beach Patrol. People like to go there "because there are no real rules about drinking," he said.

Some of the victims were taken to Disappearing Island before rescue workers arrived, said Petersohn, whose agency used its boats to transport some of the occupants of the two boats to shore.

The beaches were packed Monday as locals and tourists alike celebrated the holiday that signals the beginning of summer.

"It was a crazy day today," Petersohn said. "We had a huge crowd."

Full post as published by Cruise Ship Law on June 01, 2010 (boomark / email).