Must-See Video: Distracted Pleasure Boat Driver Pulverizes a Fishing Boat
OutdoorHub Reporters 01.17.18
This video of a large pleasure boat smashing into smaller fishing boat is entirely too close for comfort.
In addition, the video below showing a distracted driver crashing and sending the anglers into cold water has lead to the lawsuit against the 75-year-old man, Martin Lee Larsen, who was driving the pleasure boat.
According to Oregon Live, the harrowing video below was taken last summer on the morning of August 12, 2017, on the Columbia River. Bryan Maess, one of the anglers who was forced to jump from his boat, filed the $372,500 lawsuit earlier this month.
Be sure to turn up the volume on the Facebook video to listen to this terrifying experience.
Sheriff deputies with Clatsop County spoke with Mr. Larsen about the accident, and he told investigators he couldn’t see where he was going because he was sitting instead of standing, and the dash was blocking his view. The sheriff’s report also noted Larsen gets around with the assistance of a motorized scooter when on land.
There are also reports from Larsen’s son-in-law, who was on the boat at the time of the crash, that his father-in-law has been known to use his cell phone while driving the boat, and he had warned him to pay attention. Another reminder to never text and drive!
The good news is nobody was seriously injured. A few bumps, scrapes and mild hypothermia was all the physical damage Maess and his party suffered, however, the psychological damage has taken a larger toll. Maess reportedly stated since the incident, he hasn’t been able to get back out on a boat.
The case is still ongoing, and Larsen has plead “not guilty” to misdemeanor crimes of reckless operation of a watercraft, fourth-degree assault, and recklessly endangering the lives of others.
