Another hit-and-run boat incident has left a scuba diver injured, this time in Florida. The incident occurred about 1.5km off Oakland Park, which lies between Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach on the Atlantic coast, at around 2pm on 1 March.
The unnamed male diver had been surfacing from an 18m-deep dive and was reported to have raised an SMB or flag to indicate his presence.
A companion driving the dive-boat was said to have seen the oncoming boat and shouted and waved to draw the male driver's attention to the diver's presence in the water. The man had appeared to be aware of the warnings but had carried on to run over the diver and continued on his way.
The diver was left with what was described as a severely gashed leg after contact with the boat's propeller, but he remained conscious as the driver of the dive-boat retrieved him and rushed him to the beach.
There a tourniquet was applied to staunch the bleeding and emergency services were called. The diver was taken to Broward Health Medical Centre for treatment.
The offending boat was described as white, 10-13m long, with a centre console and outboard motors. It was heading north with two people on board.
Anyone with information or footage has been asked to call Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC), which is investigating the incident, on 888-404-3922.
Also on Divernet: Boat strike leaves diver with head wound, Prop severs female diver’s leg in Maldives, Boat hit diver after warning flag ignored, Speeding boat driver who hit diver fined
