Police have confirmed that one 15-year-old female minor was injured when a boat ran her over. 47-year-old Scott Carr and his teenaged daughter had only been on the island one day, and had taken a kayak out to sea for some snorkelling adventure when the incident occurred on Tuesday, June 14th near a beach resort south of San Pedro Town.
Initial reports are that around 1PM, Captain Carlos Franco was driving his white skiff, Phanny, with serial number CVL-0325, equipped with a 200-horse power engine, when he struck the minor. The collision caused injuries to her face, legs and hands. The young girl was immediately transported to the Dr. Otto Rodriguez San Pedro Polyclinic II, where she was stabilized. She was later flown to Belize City where she remained in stable condition at Belize Medical Associates. The minor suffered from a fractured jaw and after medical treatment in Belize she was flown out of the country on Thursday, June 16th for further medical services.
As a result, the Belize Coast Guard, the Police and Belize Port Authority (BPA) have commenced an investigation into the accident. It will be up to the BPA’s findings whether charges will be laid on Franco.
The BPA advices anyone who uses kayaks along the shore of the island, to take precautions, and to not venture into the vessel line where boats frequent. Avoiding such areas can prevent these type of incidents from occurring in the future.
