The subject was fishing with two passengers aboard the vessel.  The subject was anchored on both the starboard and port sides of the vessel.  The subject's vessel was facing north on the Four Mile Cut about 2 miles south of the Intracostal Waterway.  The subject's vessel was taking on water over the stern due to rough seas.  The subject's vessel had vents on the stern located on top of the starboard and port sides of the transom.  The starboard side vent's opening was facing towards the rear of the vessel and the vent hose was disconnected inside the back deck's compartment.  The subject pulled up his anchors and powered his vessel heading north.  The subject noticed at this time his vessel was full of water in the stern area.  The subject told his passengers to move towards the bow as he pulled his throttle back to neutral.  The bow dipped and the vessel capsized.  The subject advised that he had approximately 70 hours of total boat experience.  The subject advised that there were three type two PFD's on board his vessel.  The subject said that one of his passengers used one of the PFDs and the other passenger and himself did not use any PFD's.  The vesesel was a 15' fiberglass, Tidecraft, powered by a 90 HP Yamaha with remote steering.  The contributing factors were the operators inattention, force of waves, the operator's inexperience, and improper anchoring.  There was no evidence that suggested that alcohol or drugs were used.

Citation was issued for failure to change ownership of registration (45 days).

Intracostal City              