On 05/12/2012 at approximately 1:35 pm a rented, 20' Bayliner boat with 5 passengers on board was leaving the 'No wake' zone from the marina to begin cruising on Lake Washington near Kirkland, Washington.   

As the boat was beginning to et up to cruising speed, two other boats passed the vessel.  One passed on the starboard at a far distance while the second boat passed much closer on the port side at a faster speed.  The second boat was larger and threw a large wake with large swells, causing the Bayliner to lift high out of the water when it met the swells and then fall hard.  Three people in the boat were thrown off the seats they were in and were injured when they fell hard on the boat deck.   

The accident was caused by the operator's inexperience and lack of ability to effectively navigate a motorboat under power through large waves approaching his vessel.  None of the occupants were wearing life jackets.

Kirkland                      