Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Fire

CNN) -- A voice on the intercom woke Danielle Miller and told her to put on her life jacket and run to a deck. Not knowing what the emergency was, she nervously woke up her roommate and did just that.

The emergency, as she and other passengers would learn, was a fire that started in the rear of Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas cruise ship about 2:50 a.m. Monday while it was heading to the Bahamas, sending guests to the decks under the night sky.

Though it never lost power, the ship was diverted to Freeport in the Bahamas, and the fire, which began in a mooring area, was extinguished just before 5 a.m., the company said.

The ship's 2,224 guests and 796 crew members initially were headed to CocoCay, Bahamas, but the ship was redirected to Freeport for evaluation, Royal Caribbean said.

Connecticut woman died in a parasailing accident in Florida

A Connecticut woman died in a parasailing accident in Florida Wednesday when she fell about 200 feet into the ocean, authorities said.

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Stephen Miskell and his wife, Kathleen Miskell, 28. She died after falling 200 feet in a parasailing accident off Pompano Beach, Florida.

Kathleen Miskell, 28, was tandem parasailing with her husband offshore in Pompano Beach, Fla., when her harness broke Wednesday afternoon and she fell into the water, city spokeswoman Sandra King said in a statement.
“She fell between 150 and 200 feet face-down into the ocean, and that’s like hitting a brick wall, and the husband unfortunately had to witness it,” Pompano Beach Mayor Lamar Fisher told NBCMiami.com.

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Miskell’s husband, Stephen Miskell, was not hurt, and the boat’s operator reeled him in after Kathleen fell. They found Kathleen face-down in the water and pulled her into the boat too.
They started CPR, called 911 and brought Miskell to the Hillsboro Inlet. Miskell was in cardiac arrest as Pompano Beach Fire-Rescue continued CPR and administered “advanced life support,” according to King.

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Girl critically injured in boating accident

TAMPA, Fla. - An 11-year-old girl is in critical condition after a boating accident in North Tampa. Florida Fish and Wildlife officials say the girl was tubing when she was struck by a propeller while climbing onto a boat on Lake Taray. The accident happened behind her home in the Avila community. She was transported to St. Joseph's Hospital. Her name has not been released. The FWC is investigating the accident. Read more: http://www.abcactionnews.com/dpp/news/region_tampa/girl-criticially-injured-in-boating-accident#ixzz1be2qoutr

128 feared dead in Russian river boat accident / children lost

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Texas law firm sued for allegedly filing incorrect Jones Act lawsuit

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Driver of boat gives his account

Todd Spangler said he didn't whip an inner tube carrying two women into a dock at West Shores Lake. Spangler said the women — his wife, Kim, and their close friend, Jennifer Finke-Dwyer — “skipped across the water like a rock” and didn't hit the dock until 3 to 6 seconds after they had fallen off of the tube he pulled behind his boat.

Trial called in Lake George tour boat tragedy

Albany, New York - March 9, 2010 A federal judge has called a trial to determine whether another boat's wake contributed to a deadly tour boat accident on Lake George. In 2005 the Ethan Allen capsized, killing 20 elderly passengers from the Midwest. The Lake George Steamboat Company filed a request asking a judge to dismiss liability claims that its tour boat's wake contributed to the accident. On Monday the judge refused, setting a trial for June 10. Claims against the boat owner, operator and tour organizer have been settled. WCAX News

Boat’s owner convicted in Fremont Canyon crash - Partying Ends Badly on Boat

CASPER — A jury on Thursday found a Casper man guilty of two counts of aggravated assault for his role in a boat accident last spring that left four people seriously injured. Seth Linaman, 31, was also found guilty of boating under the influence. The jury of seven men and five women needed roughly two hours to reach a verdict. Linaman, standing with his attorney, showed no emotion when the announcement was made. Deliberations began at roughly 3:45 p.m., following closing arguments by Assistant District Attorney Daniel Itzen and defense attorney Richard Jameison. Including Linaman, the boat’s owner, there were four people aboard the vessel when it struck a Fremont Canyon wall at Alcova Reservoir on May 16. Everyone aboard suffered severe injuries.

Hospital Releases Two People In Tugboat Explosion

ESCATAWPA, Mississippi - There's new information on an explosion aboard a tug boat that killed two people. It happened Friday afternoon at the VT Halter ship terminal in Esctawpa, Mississippi along the Pascagoula River.Four people were hurt. Company officials are not releasing names, but a friend of one of the injured identifies him as Robert Nettles of Grand Bay. He was being transferred from Singing River Hospital in Pascagoula to USA Medical Center in Mobile, where another victim was taken by LifeFlight earlier in the afternoon. Company officials said the explosion happened aboard a tugboat. William Skinner, the Chief Executive Officer of VT Halter Marine, said, "They were cleaning a tank, getting it prepared to be painted." The family spoke out here.

Boating Death Called Freak Accident

BILOXI — A shortcut cost boater Kevin Michael Reed his life.Reed, 24, was at home on the water. His father had taught him to pilot a boat, his friends say, when he was a small boy. He loved to fish from his 21-foot boat, a Kenner with an open console and T-top. He took it out almost every weekend. On Sunday he took four friends to Horn Island, where they grilled. Reed’s best friend, B.J. Rogers, said they headed back early. They planned to go kneeboarding on the Tchoutacabouffa River.

Lone Survivor of Florida Boat Accident Opens Up

Months after a fateful fishing trip that took the lives of three football-player friends, Nick Schuyler is ready to talk about his ordeal. Schuyler was the only survivor, found clinging to a capsized boat nearly 48 hours after the men set out on a fishing trip to the Gulf.

Boating Accidents Jacksonville Florida

There has been a rash of boating accidents and water related deaths in Jacksonville lately.

'Buckle up' when on a boat this Fourth of July weekend

Coast Guard Petty Officer Michael Hulme uses a car analogy when encouraging boaters to wear a life preserver. "Do you put on your set belt right before an accident?" Hulme asks. "Mother Nature can be tough. It's always best to wear a life jacket." The Coast Guard, as well as Florida Fish and Wildlife, will be out in force this weekend patrolling the waterways as people celebrate the Fourth of July.

Horizon Lines settles class action with $20m payment

HORIZON Lines has agreed to pay $20m and freeze freight rates in its Puerto Rico trade lane for two years to settle a class action lawsuit brought by disgruntled customers. New York-listed Horizon Lines has also agreed to pay its lenders 1.5% higher interest and a one-off sum of $1.8m in consideration for being allowed to exclude this expenditure from calculations that determine its compliance with covenants

Jacksonville, Florida Boat Accident Still Being Investigated

This article indicates that the investigation into the fatal Jacksonville boating accident is still under investigation. This case will likely be under investigation for years by governmental agencies and in discovery in the lawsuits. There has been a lot of comment and judging of the facts in the press and on the blogs. It is hard to piece one of these together only based on what one reads or hears in the press and blogs. The facts and conclusions will come out over time with diligent investigation. Dwayne

Defense Base Act for the those Suffering Serious Personal Injury

This is a blog post on the Defense Base Act. The Blog has many good articles on the DBA. If you have been injured in Iraq or Afghanistan we can get you assistance on the Defense Base Act. Call us at Clark & Watson for a free consultation.