On Saturday June 17th, 2023, at approximately 4:00 pm WCO thought he heard two Vessels strike each other on the southwest portion of Lake Kampeska.  

WCO observed two personal watercrafts (PWC) sitting side by side.  Both occupants got on their vessels and conversed briefly.  Vessel 1 (V1) a blue and orange PWC headed to shore.  Vessel 2 (V2) a green and white PWC was sitting there with another PWC.  

The other PWC left V2 sitting there as it took off as well.  WCO drove his boat over to V2, to see if they needed assistance.  Operator 2 (O2) of V2 stated that V2 would not start.  WCO asked O2 if he and Operator 1 (O1) of V1 had struck one another.  

O2 said that he and O1 had run into one another.  O2 stated that O1 had to get to shore as V1 had a hole in its hull.  WCO asked O2 where they had had hit.  O2 pointed to an area around the numbers of the port side of V2.  There wasn’t much damage to the area pointed to.  WCO towed V2 and O2 back to O2’s dock near Lynnwood boat access.  WCO asked if O2 knew who O1 was.  O2 stated they knew each other and had cabins not far apart.  The owner of V1 was waiting at the dock of V2.  WCO took photos of V1 and V2.  WCO also took statements from O1 and O2.

O1 stated he and O2 were heading north bound when they collided.  O1 stated they were off the point east of Lynnwood boat access.  O1 stated he looked over and saw O2/V2 heading right towards him.  When asked how far this was, O1 pointed to a location approximately 20-30 feet away.  O1 said he cut the power to V1 and was yelling and screaming at O2 right before they collided.  

O1 said his vessel was dead in the water, but still drifting forward.  O1 stated that O2 was looking back over his shoulder when he first saw O2 coming directly at him.  O2/V2 struck O1/V1 on the starboard side of V1, just slightly ahead of the midpoint of V1.  O1 was thrown to the port side of V1 and landed approximately 20 plus feet in the water from V1.  When O1 resurfaced, he remembers facing east and looking at the port side of the PWC with Stoney Point development in the background.  O1 did not remember seeing O2 in the water at that time.  


O2 stated he and O1 were heading north bound when they collided.  O2 stated they were off the point, just east of Lynnwood boat access.  O2 stated he went to make a port side turn and during the turn is when he saw O1/V1.  V1 and V2 struck each other during the turn.  This collision would have led to a bow-to-bow type of collision rather than the bow to starboard side type of collision that happened.   O2 was unable to explain how V1 was struck on the starboard side at the midpoint of the vessel.  When asked how fast O2 was travelling, O2 stated not very fast as he was conducting a turn.  WCO explained that it takes a lot of force to create a hole in the fiberglass of V1 like there was.  WCO asked if O2 was looking behind when he struck O1/V1.  O2 said he may have looked back at the third PWC for a brief second, but then looked back forward.  When asked which direction from the PWC he was ejected, O2 stated he was thrown off his PWC to the port side of the PWC.  

Witness 1 (W1) stated V2 invited him out to ride with them.  W1 said he found them in the general area of where the accident had occurred.  W1 stated that V2 pulled slightly away from V1, approximately 20 feet and was doing a donut.  W1 stated V1 took off towards V2 and that he thought for a second they weren’t going to hit each other.  But about half to three quarters of the way through V2’s turn, V1 and V2 struck each other.  WCO asked which direction V2 was turning.   W1 stated V2 was turning to the Port side.  WCO asked if V1 turned at all before the collision.  W1 stated he couldn’t remember that things happened so fast.  The type collision explained by W1 would have led to a bow-to-bow type of collision rather than the bow to starboard side type of collision that happened.

WCO inspected both vessels the next day once they had been removed from the water.  V2 had compression damage to the port side of the vessel, along with striation marks on the port side bow.  There was a gouge on the starboard side of the bow with a paint transfer from V1.  After documenting the outside damage to the bumper, the owner of V2 removed the bow bumper.  The port side bumper screw was bent to the port/stern direction.  This showed the path of engagement.  There was also compression damage to the fiberglass on the port/ bow side of V2.  On the starboard side, there was no damage under the bumper.

WCO inspected V1 for damage.  There was a penetrating blow to the mid-section of V1 on the starboard side of the vessel.  The path of engagement for the penetrating blow entered at the mid-section of the vessel and travel towards the bow of V1 slightly.  There was transfer material from the bumper of V2 stuck in the cracks of the fiberglass on V1.  There were transfer marks in the C quadrant of V1 from the bumper of V2.  There was induced damage in the hull, in the area where the foot well ended in the stern of the V1.  
After looking at both vessels and the damage sustained to both.  It was determined that V2 struck V1 on the starboard side of the vessel, in the mid-section of vessel (T-boned) as referred to by the owner of the PWC.  This collision is what led to O2 being ejected to the port side of the vessel.  

As V2 came to a sudden stop, O2 continued in the direction he was travelling prior to the collision.  With the hole left by the penetrating blow, it was determined that V2/O2 were still traveling at a high rate of speed.  O1’s recollection of events, more closely follows the damage sustained by both vessels.  O2 was driving V2 and was not paying attention or was looking away, at the moments prior to collision.  O2 heard O1 yelling and let off the throttle, causing the bow of V2 to lower in the water and strike V1 in the hull.  At the same time O1 knew there was going to be a collision and tried to avoid being struck by jumping off the vessel.  Between O1 jumping and V1 being struck, O1 was thrown 20 plus feet from V1. 

Causes for the incident include careless operation of the vessel, Failure of V2 to give way to V1 as it was not under power at the time of the incident.

LAKE KAMPESKA
WATERTOWN                     