Washington Injury Attorney Blog

The M.V. Kirkland, a 1924 ferryboat owned and operated by Argosy Cruises, had a fire on board early Saturday morning as it was docked at Marina Park in Kirkland.

The Seattle Times reports that no one was injured in the fire.

The fire appears to have been contained to the engine room of the historic ferry which was refurbished in 1996.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The United States Coast Guard just released their annual report, "Recreational Boating Statistics 2009." Every year, the Coast Guard compiles statistics on recreational boating accidents. They base their data on accident reports filled out by people involved in the accidents.

In 2009, there were 736 boating accident fatalities and 3,358 injury accidents arising from 4,730 recreational boating accidents.

The Coast Guard reports that the number of deaths was 3.81 percent greater than the prior year even thought the number of boating accidents had decreased by 1.23 percent.

Causes

The leading causes of boating accidents include:

• Operator inattention
  
• Operator inexperience
  
• Excessive Speed
  
• Improper lookout
  
• Alcohol consumption. Alcohol consumption is involved in 16% of boating accident fatalities.

Education

Boating safety education is imperative; In 86% of boating accident deaths, the boat operator did not under go boating safety instruction.

Life jackets

The report also highlights the fact that wearing a life jacket saves life. According to Rear Admiral Kevin Cook, the Coast Guard's Director of Prevention Policy

“Nearly 75 percent of the 736 people who died in boating accidents in 2009 drowned, and 84 percent of those victims reportedly were not wearing a life jacket.   The two most important things boaters can do to prevent the loss of life is to wear a life jacket and take a boater education course.”

Washington State Accident Statistics

In Washington State, there were 111 boating accidents in 2009 which was higher than the three previous years that saw 96, 97 and 98 accidents. There were 22 fatalities in the state.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent boating accident victims and their families. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Source: "Recreational Boating Statistics 2009."

A windsurfer suffered injuries in a boating accident on Lake Coeur d'Alene around 4PM on Friday afternoon.

The man suffered a deep laceration on his calf when he was sucked under a party boat, The Osprey, and was sucked under the boat and got cut by either the boat's propeller or engine.

A report by KREM.com says that a gust of wind pushed the windsurfer too close to the boat.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Seattle Times reports that two tourists from Hungary, a 16-year-old girl and a 20-year-old man, are feared dead after a barge ran into an immobilized "duck" boat on the Delaware River in Pennsylvania.

The boating accident occurred around 2:30pm after the duck tour boat was adrift after a small fire occurred on board and the engine was shut down. 35 people were successfully rescued after the accident.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident and in the meantime the Ride the Ducks tours have been suspended across the nation including in Seattle where the tour is very popular. The Ducks tours provide a tour both on land and in the water on a authentic WWII amphibious landing craft. The NTSB investigation will determine whether proper safety procedures were followed and whether there were enough life vests per passenger.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Two people are were killed and one person was injured in a boating accident on Pend Oreille lake near Sandpoint, Idaho late Saturday night reports KHQ.com.

According to the report, the boating accident occurred around 11:30pm under Long bridge. Witnesses said the boat, which was described as a "speedboat", was speeding before it crashed into the cross members under the bridge.

The report said the people that were killed were a married couple in their 30s. An unidentified man was treated at a local hospital and was expected to be released on July 4th.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Edgar Cedillo, 33, of Washington State was killed while he was working on a dock in Juneau, Alaska. The work-related accident occurred around 2:25pm on Friday afternoon at Auke Bay, approximately 15 miles from downtown Juneau.

According to a report on the Juneau Empire, Cedillo got caught between the boat and the dock as he attempted to secure a commercial fishing vessel to the dock.

Cedillo was pronounced dead at the dock; an autopsy will be performed.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in work-related accidents and the family of those killed. We have more than 30 years experience negotiating Washington states wrongful death statute which allows the family members of a person who was killed by the negligent or criminal act of another to receive compensation for damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A Woodinville man has undergone surgery and is in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after a bicycle accident in Kenmore on Thursday.

A report by the SeattlePI says that the bicycle accident occurred around 2:55pm in the 15500 block of Juanita Drive Northeast. It is suspected that the bicyclist may have had some sort of medical emergency because he was seen riding erratically and then swerved across northbound Juanita Driver where he ran into the side of a southbound truck driven by a 47-year-old Everett man.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in bicycle accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The U.S. Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation will publish their report on the sinking of the Seattle-Based fishing vessel, Katmai, sometime next month. The Katmai had a crew of 11 on board when it sank on October 22, of 2008; 7 of the 11 crew members were killed and the 4 survivors were in the water 16 hours before they were rescued.

The Seattle Times was able to obtain the USCG report before it is published for the public and they provided their review of the report in a story entitled Report: Poor decision linked to 2008 AK sinking by Hal Bernton.

According to The Times' article, the Coast Guard lists the following factors as attributing to the boating accident:

• The Katmai was "excessively loaded"
  
• An unsecured door
  
• The "imprudent decision" by the Captain, Henry Blake, to push on despite the fact there was a major storm forecast. The article said that the weather fax with graphic images was not functioning so the captain did not have the information about the storm to base his decision.

The Coast Guard made the following recommendations. Some of these recommendations are also the same ones made after another Seattle-based vessel, the Arctic Rose, sank with the loss of 15 crew in 2001.

• Mandatory training of fishing-boat captains
  
• Mandatory inspections of fishing vessels
  
• Improve crew training

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating and watercraft accidents and the family of those killed. We also represent the families of those killed because of the negligence of another including those killed in industrial or construction accidents.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Two people have drowned and another person is missing in a fishing boat accident on the Columbia River near Wishram, Washington. A fourth person was rescued after accident and is being treated for hypothermia.

According to the Yakima Herald.com, the boating accident occurred Friday morning around 7:45am when the 18-foot fishing boat capsized amidst high winds of 25 to 35mph and gusts to 40mph and heavy swells.

Yakama Tribal Council chairman said that all four fishermen were enrolled in the Yakama tribe.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We are a personal injury law firm in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan area and we represent boating accident victims and their families.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary is offering two boater education courses in Bellevue which enable boaters to receive their Washington State boaters education card.

In Washington, a boater education safety course or an equivalency is required before a person can operate boat of 15 horsepower or more.

The classes are offered on April 24 or May 8 at Bellevue Fire Station 9 which is located on 12412 SE 69th Way.

To register for a class contact Terry Hopper, Public Education Officer, at TerryHooper@verizon.net or call 425-885-0259.

This information is provided by Washington Boating Accident Lawyers at The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Three fisherman were rescued and a fourth crew member -- the captain -- died when the Seattle-based fishing boat, the Northern Belle, sank near the mouth of Prince William Sound near Kodiak, Alaska.

The U.S. Coast Guard performed the rescue of the crew members after they received a mayday radio call around 5:30pm Tuesday night.

The captain apparently suffered a head injury as he exited the boat but no determination has yet been made whether he died as a result of head trauma, drowning or hypothermia. The three rescued crew members all suffered from hypothermia but were wearing survival suits. The named survivors were Robert Jack, 52, and Nicole Esau, both of Seattle.

The cause of the boating accident is under investigation but a report in The Seattle Times said that the captain feared that the boat was overloaded and that the boat began to list before it took on water.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Divers have apparently recovered the body of Clay Weden, 28 of Bellingham, from Lake Padden in Bellingham on Saturday afternoon. Weden had been canoeing with a companion, Cole B. Smith, 28, when their canoe overturned on Friday reports The Seattle Times.

Smith was rescued by a police officer and an off-duty Bellingham firefighter but they were not able to find Weden until rescue divers found his body the following day.

The lake temperatures was about 40 degrees at the time of the boating accident. It appears that neither boater was wearing life jackets though there were two jackets in the canoe.

Approximately 20-30 people die in boating accidents every year in Washington State.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A Seattle Fire Department boat rescued two kayakers -- whose boats had capsized -- from Puget Sound on Friday morning. The pair were trying to paddle from Bainbridge Island to Seattle reports The Seattle Times. The two men in their 20s had been in the water for about an hour when they were rescued.

According to the report one man was able to use his cell phone to call 911. The Coast Guard and the Fire Department started a search after the call and found the men about two miles off shore.

One of the boaters was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment of hypothermia, the other man was able to walk ashore. Hyopthermia is a condition where the body's temperature drops below what is required for the body to function.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the families of those who have died.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The National Transportation Safety Board has made recommendations to the Federal Aviation Agency, the U.S. Coast Guard and other governmental agencies regarding operator fatigue and a sleep disorder called sleep apnea. The NTSB presented "Fatigue and Sleep Disorders in Transportation Accidents" at the Washington D.C. Sleep Society and their data reveals that fatigue and sleep apnea has been a factor in thousands of transportation accidents since 1967 including railroad, marine, intermodal, highway, and aviation.

The NTSB recommends that pilots and other operators or motor vehicles be evaluated for obstructive sleep apnea if they have other risk factors for that disorder.

Sleep apnea is a disorder in which a person has pauses in their breathing during a sleep cycle. Each episode is termed apnea, and it means "failure to breath." When people have the condition, their breathing is obstructed during the night which affects their body, causing daytime sleepiness and fatigue.

THE NTSB gave examples of when sleep apnea was a factor in a bus accident, a train accident, a cruise ship accident and a case when two pilots fell asleep during a flight.

See the Seattle Times for a full report by the Associated Press on the condition.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Coast Guard along with the Tillamook County sheriff's office rescued six boaters after their small boat capsized at the entrance to Nehalem Bay along the Oregon Coast. Five of the six boaters were treated for minor injuries after the boating accident.

The Seattle Times reported that three of the boaters made it to shore while the others were rescued from the south jetty. According to the Coast Guard, only two of the six boaters were wearing life jackets.

The Coast Guard reports that in 2007, of 476 drowning deaths due to boating accidents, 427 of the drowning victims were not wearing a life jacket. The importance of life jackets can not be stressed enough. While all of these boaters survived this boating accident, one never knows when an accident will occur and everyone should be prepared by wearing a life vest.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blgo, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

One person was injured in a boating accident near Commencement Bay at the mouth of the Puyallup River when two boats collided after 4pm on Monday afternoon reports KOMO News.com.

According to the report, two small boats, a 19-foot boat and a smaller aluminum boat were involved in the boating accident.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A teenage boy, Justin Dunn, age 13, is being treated for leg and head injuries after a boating accident near Don Morse Park on Lake Chelan.

According to a report in The Wenatchee World, Justin and his brother were both operating personal watercraft when Justin was run over by his brother. He was taken to Lake Chelan Community Hospital for treatment.

According to Washington code RCW 79A.60, a person under the age of 14 is prohibited from operating a personal watercraft and may be fined up to $1,000 for doing so.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Coast Guard rescued the two crew-members of a Washington-based fishing vessel after fire broke out in the boat's engine room.

According to a report on Seattle's KOMO News.com, the pair were about 10 miles from the coast of Long Beach when they reported that their vessel, The Portlock, was on fire.

The Coast Guard sent The Cutter Active, a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and a 47-foot motor lifeboat to the rescue. The crew were rescued from their life raft and were not injured.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been injured in boating accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg was seriously injured in a boating accident near Bigfork, Montana on Thursday night. Rehberg reportedly underwent a three hour surgery to repair a broken ankle and fractures in left eye orbit. He also suffered a "mild, closed head injury."

Dustin Frost, age 27, Rehberg's state director, suffered a life-threatening brain injury in the boating accident. Doctors reportedly have him highly sedated and are monitoring his condition closely.

Kristin Smith, Rehberg's deputy chief of staff, suffered injuries to her face including cuts and bruises. She also fractured her nose, wrist, foot and ribs according to the report in the Flathead Beacon. Smith is expected to leave the hospital in a few days.

Also injured in the boating accident were Kalispell Republican state Sen Greg Barkus, the driver of the boat, and his wife Kathleen. Though details of their conditions have not been released, both were said to be in stable condition.

The boating accident occurred when the power boat the group was riding in hit some rocks and ran aground near Wayfarer's State Park. The group was leaving a social dinner at a Lakeside dock and were headed toMarina Kay resort in Bigfork after dark when the accident occurred.

Rehberg's blood alcohol content level was already released it it was 0.05, below the legal limit.Although it was stated that Rehberg had not been operating the boat at any time. Barkus' BAC has not yet been released.

The cause of the accident is currently being investigated by the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks along with reconstruction specialists from the Montana Highway Patrol. The FWP is looking into whether drugs, alcohol, speed or mechanical malfunction speed played a role in the accident.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg was seriously injured in a boating accident near Bigfork, Montana on Thursday night. Rehberg reportedly underwent a three hour surgery to repair a broken ankle and fractures in left eye socket. He also suffered a "mild, closed head injury."

Dustin Frost, age 27, Rehberg's state director, suffered a life-threatening brain injury in the boating accident. Doctors reportedly have him highly sedated and are monitoring his condition closely.

Kristin Smith, Rehberg's deputy chief of staff, suffered injuries to her face including cuts and bruises. She also fractured her nose, wrist, foot and ribs according to the report in the Flathead Beacon. Smith is expected to leave the hospital in a few days.

Also injured in the boating accident were Kalispell Republican state Sen Greg Barkus, the driver of the boat, and his wife Kathleen. Though details of their conditions have not been released, both were said to be in stable condition.

The boating accident occurred when the power boat the group was riding in hit some rocks and ran aground near Wayfarer's State Park. The group was leaving a social dinner at a Lakeside dock and were headed to Marina Kay resort in Bigfork after dark when the accident occurred.

Rehberg's blood alcohol content level was 0.05%, below the legal limit. It was stated that Rehberg had not been operating the boat at any time. Barkus' BAC has not yet been released.

The cause of the accident is currently being investigated by the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks along with reconstruction specialists from the Montana Highway Patrol. The FWP is looking into whether drugs, alcohol, speed or mechanical malfunction speed played a role in the accident.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in boating accidents and the family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.