A 16-year-old Connecticut high school student was killed and another suffered a serious leg injury after the teens fell while tubing on Long Island Sound and were struck by the boat towing them, according to police.
Police said the accident happened while four girls, all 16-year-olds from Greenwich, were boating off Greenwich Point Park on Wednesday afternoon. According to police, the boat belonged to one of their fathers.
Two of the teens fell off an inner tube around 2 p.m. and became entangled in the boat's propeller while one of the other girls brought it around to pick them up, police said.
The victims were taken ashore at the Old Greenwich Yacht Club, the harbormaster said. A Greenwich High School student was pronounced dead at the scene and the other teen was rushed to Stamford Hospital for treatment of a soft-tissue leg injury, according to police.
Police initially said the surviving victim was in critical condition, but her status was upgraded on Wednesday evening. She received "extensive stitching" and her injuries are not life threatening, police said. She remains in the hospital on Thursday morning.
The harbormaster said the girls are not members of the yacht club.
Police divers remained at the scene throughout the evening to investigate, along with an accident reconstruction team from the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
"We believe this to be nothing more than a horrifically tragic accident, and alcohol doesn't appear to be part of it," said Lt. Kraig Gray of the Greenwich Police Department.
The victims' names have not been released. Police said all their immediate family members have been notified and their names will be officially released by noon on Thursday.
Greenwich school superintendent William S. McKersie said in a statement on Wednesday evening that the girls are rising juniors at Greenwich High School. Grief counselors will be available at school "at the appopriate time," McKersie said.
Connecticut boating regulations require operators to be at least 13 years old and obtain a safe boater's certificate to maneuver a boat on the sound. It's not clear if the driver in this instance was properly certified.+
A photo near the investigation site of the boat accident pic.twitter.com/Oz32ygeg2B
— Greenwich PD PIO (@GreenwichCTPD) August 6, 2014
Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com