RedactedNarrative: Operator 1 was on his way home from fishing when he was called to help another boat that had broken down. He was trying to tow that boat into the Alafia River when he struck a submerged dredge pipe near Bird Island. As a result of Operator 1 hitting the submerged dredge pipe, his nephew was thrown from the vessel.  Another passenger on the boat was also thrown off the boat but was not injured.  The port side and center pontoons got gouges in them as a result of hitting the pipe. The boat began to sink but did not completely submerge under water and Operator 1 was able to get the boat home without further incident. 
  
  On July 10, 2018 I went out to inspect the area where Operator 1 ‘s vessel struck the pipe near Bird Island at the mouth of the Alafia River. The dredge pipe was completely submerged and had several bright orange buoys attached to the pipe all along the length of the the portion that is submerged. The orange buoys were spaced about every 50-100 feet. An inspection of the area where the dredge pipe is located the pipe was resting on the bottom of the bay in about 12- 16 inches of water. The pipe was clearly marked (Section 28.2.6 CFR) per the US Coast Guard rules for dredge pipes. At the date and time of the accident the tide for that area was low (June 30th low tide 1530 hours).
  