On 07/20/2012 at approximately 11:15 am, I, Game Warden, received a call from the Aransas Pass Police Dept. (APPD) informing me that there had been a boating accident in Redfish bay and that a sixteen year old female had been severely injured.  At that time I was in Corpus Christi and informed the dispatcher that I would be in route shortly to assist in the accident investigation.  
     The operator was identified.  Game Warden and I identified ourselves as Texas Game Wardens and informed him that we were working together with the Aransas Pass Police Department on this accident. I asked Operator if he could take me to the location of the accident and give me a description of events that led up to the incident.  Operator stated that as he was making a wide turn the vessel swapped ends violently and without warning. Operator added that he was unsure as to the location of the accident due to the fact that it was his first time in Redfish Bay alone. Operator’s words “swapped ends” are taken to mean that the vessel spun on its axis, as a vehicle spins on a slippery surface.   Operator also stated that when the boat swapped ends on him, Victim was ejected from the vessel and struck by the propeller. I then asked Operator if he hit a sandbar or was in shallow water at the time of the accident.  Operator’s response was that he did not hit a sandbar and also that he was not in shallow water due to the fact that when he saw Victim face down in the water, He dove in to get her.
     By this time we were exiting Hampton's Landing Marina entering the Intra Coastal Waterway that runs North and South just east of Hampton’s Landing.  I asked Operator if anything looked familiar and if he could direct me to the location of the accident.  He struggled a little bit due to the fact of not knowing the area but after looking at landmarks such as the Dale Miller Bridge and can buoys along the ICW, he began to recollect the location.  He stated that he remembered a marker on the East side of the ICW and could take us to the site of the accident.
     We proceeded in an easterly direction in a channel that runs perpendicular to the ICW with Steadmans Reef on the North side and Ransom Island on the South side.  Operator began recalling landmarks on Ransom Island which led us a location that he believed was where the accident occurred.  The GPS coordinates for the scene of the accident were recorded as N 27 52’44.4”   W097 08’13.6”, which is due east from Hampton's Landing.

Aransas Pass                  