A ferry ushering families from a popular sand sculpting competition in Florida was struck by a recreational boat Sunday evening in an apparent hit-and-run, killing one ferry passenger and injuring several others, police and witnesses said.
The ferry was carrying people to and from the Sugar Sand Festival in Clearwater, CNN affiliate WFTS reported.
The collision happened around 8:40 p.m. Sunday near the Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge when a 37-foot recreational boat carrying about six people struck the 40-foot ferry carrying about 45 people, according to Clearwater Police and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The recreational boat “overrode nearly three-quarters of the ferry,” said Clearwater Police Department Chief Eric Gandy during a Monday news conference.
Of the 10 people injured, six of them were transported to local hospitals as trauma alerts, Gandy said. The incident was declared “a mass casualty incident by the fire department due to the number of injuries,” according to Clearwater police.
The man who died was identified as Jose Castro, 41, of Palm Harbor, just a few miles north of Clearwater, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Hailee Seely.
Officials have not released the names of the people injured.
The US Coast Guard and Florida Fish and Wildlife are investigating the cause of the crash. Fish and Wildlife will lead the investigation, Clearwater police said. The ferry, as an inspected commercial vessel, falls under the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard, which will review compliance with the Code of Federal Regulations, according to Nicole Groll with USCG.
Investigators search the wreckage of a ferry after a boat crashed into it near the Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge. Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times/AP
Brenda Alvarez, who is about eight months pregnant, was on the ferry with her husband and two young children when a crew member started yelling, “Hey, hey, hey!” the family told CNN affiliate WFTS.
Alvarez’s husband turned around to see a large boat “just come through” the ferry, he said.
The other boat “shattered the whole back of” the ferry and “left a huge dent,” Brenda Alvarez told WFTS. “We can’t understand how fast they were going.”
Officers arrived to find a “chaotic scene,” Clearwater police spokesperson Rob Shaw told CNN affiliate Bay News 9. Nearby “good Samaritans” used their own boats to help evacuate passengers.
The ferry came to rest on a sandbar, so some on board were able to walk to shore. But “firefighters had to go into the water and help some people,” Shaw said.
Kristin Vincelli, who was also leaving the festival, shared video with CNN showing emergency vehicles rushing toward the waterfront.
Police respond to the Clearwater boat collision. Kristin Vincelli
The recreational boat did not stay at the crash scene but it is unclear if the collision is being investigated as a hit-and-run, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Captain Matthew Dallarosa.
“There is evidence that shows that the (recreational boat) did remain there for a period of time and then ultimately ended up at the Belleair Boat Ramp,” Dallarosa said Monday.
Those injured in the collision were triaged at a separate boat ramp nearby, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife.
So far, authorities have released few details about the boat that hit the ferry. As of Tuesday morning, no arrests had been made, Seely said.
