Dive Boat Company Sued After Woman Dies

This is fairly awful, so prepare yourself. A woman and her husband were on a dive boat when this incident occurred. The dive boat operator, who was only operating the boat for the third time, accidentally through the boat in reverse as he was trying to maneuver. He lost control of the boat, causing it to back over the woman’s legs. Her injuries were severe. Cut and chop lacerations to her legs caused her to lose blood and she died. Her husband tried and failed to free her from the underside of the boat. He has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the dive boat company.

The victim was not the only one sucked under the boat that day. In two other dives, another diver was able to free themselves by throwing a speargun into the gears and pushing herself away.

The incident remains under investigation with the Florida Wildlife Commission, but the lawsuit has already been filed.

Was the Captain of the Boat Negligent?

The plaintiffs will argue that the captain of the boat was negligent. They will say that the captain did not know how to safely control the boat and struggled to bring it back to shore after the mangled woman was freed from the gears. The plaintiffs contend it was just the second day and the third time the captain had ever used the boat. In the two dives scheduled that day, the captain appeared to have mechanical problems and was struggling to safely maneuver the boat. Further, when the captain attempted to dock the boat, it ran aground damaging the rudder.

After the first couple of incidents, former patrons of the diving company begged the captain not to use the boat again until it was repaired. Instead, the captain booked more dives resulting in the fatality.

It appears that the company is no longer operating. The lawsuit names Florida Scuba Charters as well as Palm Beach Marina. According to the lawsuit, there was a ban on dive boats in place at the time. This ban was related to the coronavirus. The suit says the marina should not have allowed the dive boat to take passengers.

Was the Captain Grossly Negligent? 

Typical negligence is just a simple form of carelessness that results in injury to another person. Gross negligence is a kind of carelessness that borders on an indifference to human life. In this case, the captain knew that he was having trouble with the boat and two other divers nearly lost their lives during a dive. Despite listening to the pleadings of passengers who’d nearly been killed, the company decided to continue with tours. This directly cost another person their life. So gross negligence and punitive damages will be in play in this lawsuit.

Talk to a Miami Personal Injury Lawyer

If your injuries are related to the negligence of another, call the Miami personal injury lawyers at the office of Alan Goldfarb, P.A. today to schedule a free consultation and recover damages for your injuries.

Resource:

palmbeachpost.com/story/news/local/2020/09/11/lawsuit-alleges-dive-boat-backed-over-woman-off-palm-beach-fatally-slicing-legs/5630837002/

https://www.goldfarbpa.com/north-carolina-woman-sues-disney-world-over-cbd-arrest/