(File Photo by Jack Reynolds)
Six people were injured in a boat accident shortly before 6 p.m. May 25 in the bay off Long Beach Township, authorities said. Among the injured was a couple in their 20s who were airlifted in critical condition. The cause of the accident is under investigation.
The New Jersey State Police responded to the scene at approximately 5:45 p.m. Monday, May 25 to a single-vessel accident. The boat struck a channel marker in the bay, ejecting two people, Christopher Postorino, a state police public information officer, confirmed May 26.
The accident occurred in the vicinity of the Brant Beach Yacht Club. The state police’s Marine Unit conducted CPR on a 27-year-old man for more than 20 minutes on the water before he was stable enough to be moved to an ambulance and transported to Surf City for air transport, Jack Casella, an EMT with the Beach Haven Volunteer First Aid Squad, said May 25. The man was flown to a trauma center in Atlantic City, he added.
The Beach Haven squad arrived on land about 10 minutes after the call was dispatched and found the victims at the rescue point between 62nd and 63rd streets in Brant Beach, Casella said.
The man’s girlfriend also was airlifted to the trauma center with injuries from the accident. The four other occupants on board – a mother, father, son and his girlfriend – were taken to Southern Ocean Medical Center with minor injuries, authorities said.
Reports surfaced Tuesday morning that the boat had been towed.
Postorino said no additional information will be released, and the investigation remains ongoing.
In addition to the Beach Haven First Aid Squad and the N.J. State Police, U.S. Coast Guard Station Barnegat Light, Long Beach Township police, Barnegat Light Volunteer First Aid Squad and Surf City EMS also responded. —G.G.S., J.K.-H.