Palm Beach diver loses arm as group hit by boat - Florida

[chris kippax]

The "style of boat" has nothing to do with the negligence and incompetence of the "captain". People can be dangerous morons in any style of powerboat, and that's on the people, not the boat. When you complain "first world greed" is the problem it just makes you look envious, not serious. And you are not the sustainability police. If you were, you'd have to outlaw global travel to exotic live aboard scuba destinations.

Again as I said before I am not envious, I enjoy my life and have everything thing I need. Those saying this may be the envious ones as they try to justify this need for a boat like this.
Anyone who has done incident investigation at work will know that whole columns are dedicated to “Human Factors”
These human factors are well outside of the realm of control. So the negligence of the captain is always a hazard and one that is not easily controlled.
You might want to use a different analogy of banning international flight to exotic dive destinations as it looks like that one has already been momentarily accomplished.
As far as calling me the sustainability police, does that say that you think this type of vessel is sustainable to take a few people out on the water for the day?
If so we are truly lost.

 

[tekkydiver]

Frankly, the only entity that should be deciding the type of vessel I may own is..... ME. FWC might want to look at inadequate flag laws. Divers and boats need more visible methods to signal their presence. That would be a start

 

[DandyDon]

But don't try to get away with speeding in a school zone much less hitting a kid that way.

 

[PBcatfish]

Followup story: Hit by a boat in the ocean, he watched his arm fall off. Now Carter Viss tells his tale of survival

I'm not a big fan of pushing through legislation as a feel-good knee-jerk reaction to a single event. We have too many laws already. If a no wake zone is deemed appropriate for that area, it should not be associated with this unfortunate event. The proposed legislation should stand on it's own merit. The concept of not letting a crisis go to waste has been overused & abused enough already.

If a new law is to be written regarding no wake near shore, it would be better if it covered the entire state & specified a distance from shore, perhaps 100 yards. If a specific area is to be cordoned off as a dive spot, the method for doing that already exists. Swimming area buoys can be installed.

 

[johndiver999]

There are several buoys in that area marking the reefs. He drove at high speed inshore of them.

This incident casts doubt on the practicality of using buoys in the open ocean.

 

[Bob DBF]

There are several buoys in that area marking the reefs. He drove at high speed inshore of them.

This incident casts doubt on the practicality of using buoys in the open ocean.

It depends on why the buoys are placed, if it is to mark the reef so boats won't run aground and damage the reef, they are doing their job.

Now if one wanted to close the area to traffic, or restrict speed in the area, it would be a matter of getting the appropriate agency to restrict the area and mark it appropriately. I doubt that it would be closed to traffic, but a speed limit its a possibility if enough people want one.

Educating the boating public, enforcement, and stiffer penalties for boaters violations would have a greater impact than focusing on one small area.

 

[johndiver999]

They are actually mooring buoys

 

[PBcatfish]

There are several buoys in that area marking the reefs. He drove at high speed inshore of them.

This incident casts doubt on the practicality of using buoys in the open ocean.

According to the accounts I read, the event occurred north of the mooring field that is in front of the Breakers. I do not believe that the diver was in the mooring field.

I know the area well. I dive it often. I was not there when the event occurred, so I rely on public reports of the event location.

 

[Bob DBF]

They are actually mooring buoys

So there are not buoys marking the reef?

 

[johndiver999]

So there are not buoys marking the reef?

Sorry for the confusion. The accident happened a few hundred yards north of the breakers and inshore of the mooring buoys. The buoys are installed by the Palm Beach County Environmental Resources division and they are placed ON the reefs. They have installed stainless steel loops/anchors permanently into the rock reef.

As I understand it, the primary objective is to allow the (historically) heavy use of these inshore reefs by snorkelers (on boats) and preventing the need for boats to drop their own anchors on the bottom,