Boat Crash Injures Two in Oconee County, South Carolina (SC)

OCONEE COUNTY, SC- Foxcarolina.com writes that a boat crash left two people injured this week in Oconee County. The wreck involved two vessels that collided on Lake Keowee in the late evening close to Fall Creek Landing.*

One of the involved vessels was a bass boat, and the other was a pontoon. The crews stated that the bass boat struck the pontoon boat. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources is carrying out the investigation into the accident. 

Boating is a popular recreational activity in much of the United States. There are over eleven million registered vessels in the nation. With so many boats on the water, there are bound to be accidents. In 2017, 4,291 incidents were reported to the United States Coast Guard. Those incidents led to 658 fatalities and thousands of injuries. 

When spending time on the water, there are ways to decrease dangers. The single most important piece of advice that the National Safety Council has for boaters is to wear a life jacket. In a study of boat-related fatalities, the lack of life jackets is a major factor. More than three out of four people who died in boating incidents drowned, and of those individuals, 84 percent were not using a life jacket. 

People often mistakenly believe that they do not need a life vest because they are good swimmers. When it comes to boating, even experienced and strong swimmers can suffer injuries that impair their ability to swim. A fall from a boat can cause a person to suffer a head injury and become unconscious. Such an accident need not be fatal if rescue workers are able to pull the victim from the water. 

Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes.  To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or a family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.

Sources:

https://www.foxcarolina.com/investigations/crews-two-hurt-after-boat-collision-on-lake-keowee/article_e6025900-c403-11ea-adfa-ff42cf6cd59e.html

https://www.nsc.org/home-safety/tools-resources/seasonal-safety/summer/boating