CLEARWATER, Fla. (WWSB) – Officials have identified the person who was driving the boat involved in a fatal crash in Clearwater with a ferry carrying 44 people.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the lead agency in the investigation, said Jeff Knight, 62, was operating the 37-foot boat that rear-ended the 40-foot Clearwater Ferry Sunday night, killing one passenger, and injuring many others.
Clearwater Police Chief Eric Gandy said Knight’s vessel “overrode nearly three quarters of the ferry,” just before 9 p.m. The FWC said Tuesday morning that 44 passengers were aboard the ferry, many coming from the Sugar Sand Festival which had celebrated its closing night Sunday.
Gandy said passengers and crew members suffered injuries and were ferried to shore by other boats on the water. Clearwater Police and Clearwater EMS said there were six people critically injured, with another four facing other minor injuries. Victims were transported to hospitals in Clearwater, St. Petersburg and Tampa.
One passenger on the ferry, 41-year-old Jose Castro of Palm Harbor, was killed, the FWC confirmed Tuesday.
No charges have yet been filed against Knight, but in a news conference Monday night, an official from the FWC said the impact could be considered a “hit-and-run.”
Investigators from the U.S. Department of Transportation will aid in the investigation, as the ferry was a Department of Transportation-inspected vessel.
Knight’s boat stayed in the accident area for a short time; officers encountered it about 3.5 miles away. Knight was cooperating with authorities, and a breathalyzer test showed no alcohol impairment, investigators said.
Officers with the FWC were working with the State Attorney’s Office to determine if any charges would be filed, officials said.
Fish and wildlife officers “would always recommend that if someone is involved in an accident, you remain at the scene,” said Capt. Matthew Dallarosa of the FWC.
Emergency dispatchers answering 911 calls from the accident scene heard “horrific screaming” in the background, said Gandy.
The injured passengers had broken bones, soft-tissue injuries and head injuries, said Tony Tedesco, EMS chief for Clearwater Fire Rescue.
All of those injured were adults aboard the ferry.
“When our crews first arrived, they found themselves in the water trying to rescue people,” Tedesco said. “On top of that, they’re trying to figure out who was the most injured.”
The ferry came to rest on a sandbar just south of the Memorial Causeway bridge. The crash took place in an area without speed restrictions.
The U.S. Coast Guard said in a social media post that on-scene reports indicated that all 44 people on the ferry and all six people on the boat were accounted for.
“All local hospitals have been notified. Multiple trauma alerts have been called with helicopters transporting two of the more seriously injured,” the post said.
Videos on social media showed several first responders rushing to the scene with lights flashing. Several Good Samaritans also helped the ferry passengers get to safety, officials said.
— Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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