During a week in April, Lee County waterways were beset by three tragic deaths, all of them by drowning and all of them, sadly, preventable. In describing the circumstances, the hope of all marine agencies is that when you hear the scenarios, if similar situations arise, and you are apprised, further tragedies may be avoided. The first involved a man who went fishing in a kayak, in the dark, with no life jacket, in a potentially busy boating area. No one will ever know for sure what happened, but he did not return and a search was launched, leading to the painful discovery of his body two days later. The problem here is that no one should be out on the water in a kayak in the dark, which, by design, does not have running lights, making them susceptible to being struck or flipped by the wake of a large boat, or some other reason. A life jacket could have saved the kayaker’s life, even if he were injured.
The second case involved a vacationer who was enjoying an afternoon with friends on a pontoon boat near Estero Island. It was a hot day and at some point, as the craft drifted along in open water, the victim decided to cool off by jumping into the water. Evidence suggests that the area where he made his plunge was very shallow. I have spoken before in this space about the shallowness of area waters involving boats going aground because of the unpredictability of sand bars dotting the area. The depth can go, for example, from fifteen feet to two feet in a very short time and then back to twenty feet. Add to that the fact that, much of the time, because of the nature of the sea floor and the glare, the bottom is often not easily discernible by the naked eye. When the victim made his leap, he apparently struck the bottom hard enough to knock the wind out of him or worse, and before it was determined he was in trouble, he took water in his lungs and attempts to revive him were unsuccessful. The lesson here is clear. If you need to cool off, be aware of the potential danger of shallow water before jumping off your boat.
The third involved an unfortunate accident or the probable use of alcohol, or both. One evening, a local man was apparently returning to his vessel in the south mooring field, or preparing to head for shore, using a small dinghy, which was heavily laden with gear, making the process dicey at best. According to friends, he was known to imbibe, despite a medical condition which made the practice risky. The friends apparently chided him about the practice numerous times. At some point, probably trying to board the sailboat he lived on, or the dinghy, which can be especially precarious in windy conditions or roiled waters, the victim apparently lost his balance and fell into the water, possibly striking his head in the process. He was found the next day. Whether it was alcohol related or a tragic accident, the incident underscores the necessity for care when boarding boats in the dark.
As I stated at the beginning of this piece, the hope is that by recounting these tragedies, future incidents of these types can be avoided.