A WARNING has been issued after a 22-year-old woman was seriously injured when she fell from a boat and was sucked into the propellers.
The Florida accident is the latest in a series of boat related incidents who have claimed lives in several states.
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The woman, a tourist, suffered “several very deep cuts to her arm” after falling off the pontoon boat on July 25, the sheriff’s office said.
She was reportedly riding on the bow with her feet dangling in the water when the boat hit a wave.
The movement of the wave pulled the woman through the propeller into the water and under the boat.
First responders from the sheriff’s office were able to attend to the woman until emergency services arrived.
The incident took place west of Crab Island along the intercoastal waterway.
“We wanted to take a moment to drive home to avoid sitting on the bow of a pontoon boat while it’s en route,” reads a statement from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office.
“And we want to remind everyone to be careful on the water.
“A fun day of sailing can turn tragic very quickly.”
The incident is under investigation by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The news of the accident comes as a third body was recovered from Florida waters within days.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission believes a “fatal boat accident” led to the death of a 27-year-old Port Orange manaccording to the Miami Herald.
Two other boat accidents took place over the holiday weekend of July 4.
Julia Budzinski, the 17-year-old daughter of Mark Budzinski, Toronto Blue Jay’s first base coach, was hit by a ship’s propeller while tubing in a river in Virginia.
Two days later, the body of Madison Bradley, also 17, was found in the Blind River, according to the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries.
Bradley was a passenger on a pontoon boat with five other people. Officers said she was riding on the bow in front of the protective rail with a male passenger.