ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — One teenager was killed and another injured in a boating accident that happened Sunday.
Collin Moorefield, 15, died from his injuries, FWC said.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, United States Coast Guard, St. Petersburg Police Department, St. Petersburg Fire Rescue and Pinellas County Sheriff's Office all responded to Bayshore Boulevard at about 4:30 p.m. Sunday.
Authorities said an 18-foot vessel with two people on board hit a dock, and both were ejected into the water in the Shore Acres area.
Alexis Carlon was playing with her daughter in the backyard when she saw the teens go by. She later heard a loud sound and noticed the boat was still going but without the teenagers on it.
"We saw the boat basically go out into the Bay, do a circle and head straight for our dock, (it) veered suddenly and ran into the seawall," she said.
Her husband jumped into the boat and stopped it. He found two cell phones on the boat and used one to call 911.
Both were eventually found and taken to a hospital. The vessel operator, 15-year-old Christian Tharakan, suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Moorefield was a passenger.
“We would like to express our condolences to the Moorefield family and ask that the public give the family space during this difficult time.” said Major Evan Laskowski, Southwest Regional Commander.
The investigation is still under way.
“Hopefully this investigation will come through and find out how important boating safety is," said Capt. Garth Swingle, with St. Pete Fire Rescue. "And what’s come into play and what we need to do to make sure this doesn’t happen again and everyone’s life feels safe out on the water.”