Investigators suspect alcohol a factor in Lake Havasu boat accident
Alcohol is considered to have been a factor in a Monday night boat accident near Cattail Cove, which left two passengers seriously injured, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Department.
The boat’s operator, James John McDermott, 58, of Lake Havasu City, and one of two passengers, Susan Arlene Soph, 61, of Houston, were airlifted to West Valley Hospital in Phoenix and University Medical Center in Las Vegas, respectively, for serious injuries.
McDermott was in stable condition at West Valley’s Intensive Care Unit Tuesday afternoon, sheriff’s deputy Ed Trafecanty said. Soph was in serious condition Tuesday night, according to a hospital administrator at University Medical Center.
McDermott, who was driving the boat, crashed the 17-foot 1997 Excel boat into a cliff face on shore around 6 p.m. near Three Dunes on Lake Havasu. He was pinned under the steering column and sustained serious injuries, Trafecanty said.
Two people camping near the site of the accident heard the crash and boated over to offer help. Another witness called 911 to report the accident, but investigators were not able to make contact with her as of Tuesday afternoon.
Another passenger, Kelly Wilson, 38, of Houston, sustained minor injuries and told first responders at the scene that she and McDermott were the only people on the boat. But as one of the sheriff’s boats was circling the area, they spotted the toes of another person stuck in a cavern of sorts on the shore, Trafecanty said.
“It was very fortunate we did,” he said.
Havasu firefighters pulled Soph from the rocks where she had landed after being ejected from the boat, sustaining multiple fractures.
Investigators found evidence of alcohol in the boat and on the three passengers and consider it a factor in the accident. The investigation is ongoing and will need to wait for the Department of Public Safety to return the results of toxicology reports.
You may contact the reporter at zmatson@havasunews.com.
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