2 weeks Ago
Multiple people were injured after a boat collided with a ferry carrying more than 40 people in Clearwater, Florida, according to authorities. Six people have been declared as “trauma alerts,” two of whom were transported from the scene by helicopter, Clearwater police said. Police were notified around 8:40 p.
m. local time that a recreational boat struck the ferry near the Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge and “fled the scene,” according to police. The ferry came to rest on a sandbar just south of the bridge and all other passengers were safely evacuated, police said.
The cause of the collision is not clear. Everyone who was injured was on the ferry, police said, adding the two patients taken away by helicopter were “seriously injured.” “It is not believed that there is anyone reported missing from the ferry,” Rob Shaw, a public information officer for the police, told CNN.
The United States Coast Guard said it was notified of the collision and that crews from the Station Sand Key and partner agencies were on the scene. CNN reached out to the Pinellas County Fire and mayor’s office for additional details. Drivers are being urged to avoid the Memorial Causeway as emergency crews remain at the scene.
The Coast Guard and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will be leading the investigation into the crash, Clearwater police said. This is a developing story and will be updated. CNN’s Michelle Watson contributed to this report.
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