The Coast Guard reports it medically evacuated a 37-year-old man from the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Jewel of the Seas approximately 25 miles west of Sanibel Island, Florida Sunday, January 22, 2012.
The popularity of kayaking, and kayak fishing, has exploded in Florida. I have been a kayak angler for over nine years and have seen the sport grow from a few anglers pocketed in particular geographic locations to a statewide phenomenon. A few years ago, information about ocean kayak rigging and techniques was only available through trial-and-error or a close-nit network of fishermen. Today there are multiple magazines dedicated to kayak fishing and fishing shows often showcase the sport. There even is a national kayak fishing tournament where several hundred anglers participate each year. Though avid kayakers find the sport both challenging and rewarding, it is not without additional risk. The biggest man-made danger comes from the interactions between motor boats and kayaks. This is especially so in Florida where there are more registered motor boats than any other state. These two types of vessel operators must live in harmony in order to avoid accidents, injuries and deaths.
KeyNet.com reports a vacationer from Canada nearly lost his leg in a boating accident on January 11, 2012 near Angelfish Creek, off North Key Largo. Thomas N. Davidson, 52, of Ottawa was ejected from a 16′ Dolphin flats boat owned by Tom Davidson, 71, of Key Largo in a side creek off Angelfish Creek. After falling overboard, the boat circled back and ran over the younger Davidson causing severe lacerations to his leg.
A cruise ship passenger aboard the Norwegian Dawn in need of medical attention was medically evacuated by the Coast Guard Monday, Jan. 16, near the Bahamas. A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, Florida, safely hoisted the 75-year-old passenger from Canada and a ship’s nurse from the cruise ship and transferred them to medical facility in Nassau, Bahamas. Medical evacuations from cruise ships are quite common.
Brais & Brais’ maritime lawyers Keith Brais and Richard Rusak were asked by Florida Lawyers Mutual to contribute to an article showcasing the Ship Owner’s Limitation of Liability Act. The Limitation of Liability Act enables vessel owners in certain situations to limit their liability for boating accidents to the vessel’s value. Though intended to encourage American commercial shipping during a time where marine insurance was difficult to obtain, the loose language of the over 150 year law has been recently held to apply to recreational boat accidents. This little known and complicated area of maritime law routinely trips up general practice attorneys prompting Florida Lawyers Mutual, an insurance company specializing in legal malpractice claims, to address the Act in its quarterly publication.
