Video released by police shows the moment a recreational boat crashed into the back of a ferry in Clearwater, Florida, killing one person and injuring 10 other people.
The crash happened around 8:40 p.m. Sunday as a 40-foot commercial ferry returned from Clearwater Beach, authorities said. It was carrying 45 passengers and crew members.
Police Chief Eric Gandy said Monday that he believes the boat "overrode nearly three-quarters of the ferry."
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said that "there was definitely a point where both those boats were fully entangled" and that the ferry sustained a large amount of damage. The recreational boat was 37 feet and had about six people onboard, the fish and wildlife commission said.
Before first responders arrived, they knew they were dealing with a "major situation" because 911 operators described hearing "horrific screaming in the background" as people called for help, Gandy said.
In a mayday call, a person could be heard reporting the collision.
"Mayday, mayday, mayday. There’s been a boat collision. The Clearwater Ferry underneath the Clearwater Memorial Causeway. The Clearwater Ferry is adrift," the person said.
Authorities identified the man who was killed as Jose Castro, 41, of Palm Harbor.
Injured victims were taken to hospitals in Clearwater, St. Petersburg and Tampa, Gandy said.
"Our thoughts go out to the families of those that were onboard the ferry, particularly of the children and the family of the gentleman who died," he said, adding that ferry crew members "likely saved lives."
Gandy alleged that the boat that struck the ferry did not stay at the scene and said sheriff’s deputies later found it about 3 miles south near the Belleair Causeway.
The operator, identified as Jeff Knight, 63, and his passengers were still on the boat, Gandy said.
Knight's lawyer, J. Kevin Hayslett, rebutted the allegation in a letter to a fish and wildlife commission investigator. He said video, the captain of a third boat nearby and witnesses on the vessels that collided would prove Knight stayed at the crash site until first responders arrived, at which point he headed for a dock because his vessel was taking on water.
Knight not only stayed, Hayslett said, but he called 911 and remained on the line with an operator for nearly 12 minutes.
He tied his boat to the ferry "to stabilize it and render aid," Hayslett said.
"He used his boat to maneuver the ferry closer to shore so that first responders would have easier access to the passengers," Hayslett said.
Knight offered to transport passengers, but the captain refused, Hayslett said.
Authorities stopped the boat as Knight navigated it toward a dock, Hayslett said. Afterward, it was towed to its destination and farther from the crash site "at their insistence," Hayslett said.
The letter asks investigators to preserve any evidence, including video, radio communication and latitude and longitude data for both vessels.
Hayslett alleged the ferry might not have had required nighttime navigational lighting — namely a stern light that needs to be visible for 2 miles. And, he said, multiple witnesses reported that the captain and some passengers may have been distracted by a dolphin sighting.
Gandy, the police chief, and the Clearwater Ferry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the allegations late Tuesday.
Authorities said Knight was cooperating with the investigation and voluntarily submitted to a blood alcohol test, which did not detect any alcohol.
