RedactedNarrative: On august 14, 2019, on the icw near the holden beach bridge, operator1 was operating a rented personal watercraft (vessel 1).  His stepbrother was also operating a rented personal watercraft (vessel 2).  Both personal watercrafts (pwcs) had been rented from holden beach jet ski rentals located in supply, nc.  The weather was cloudy but calm with moderate wind and clear visibility. Vessel traffic was low.
  
  At approximately 14:00, vessel 1 was stopped with its engine running while drifting on the icw next to vessel 2, which was also stopped and drifting down the icw but with its engine off.  A wake struck vessel 1 on its portside and pushed the bow of vessel 1 onto the rear portside of vessel 2.  The tie-down hook located on the front of the bow of vessel 1 punched a hole through the fiberglass hull of vessel 2 and also caused several cracks to travel approximately 2' down the portside of vessel 2.  Vessel 1 did not sustain any noticeable damage.  Vessel 1 did have some white flecks of fiberglass embedded around its tie-down hook.  Vessel 2 also had fresh black plastic rub marks transferred onto it which were consistent with the color and material on the hull of vessel 1's lower bow area.
  
  Vessel 2 had several small areas covered in white fiberglass repair tape.  The impact site from vessel 1's bow landed on one of these areas which caused new cracks to travel toward the rear of vessel 2 and connect with a 2nd similar area.  Underneath these taped areas were preexisting cracks in the fiberglass from prior rentals.  I observed several of the rental pwcs at the business site had these kinds of taped areas covering fiberglass damage.  Some of the damage observed near the impact site was preexisting and this preexisting damage most likely caused the damage from this incident to exceed what would have been expected from a similar incident involving a hull with no preexisting damage.
  
  This incident appears to be the result of a wake striking vessel 1 at an inopportune time and no violations of state law are suspected.
  
  
  *******end of report*****
  