LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, FLA. (WSVN) - It was a close call for a family living by the water in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea when a boat leaped out of the Intracoastal Waterway and crashed into the rear of their home.
The boat struck a channel marker, ricocheted and crashed into the rear of the home, located along the 1500 West Terra Mar Drive, Tuesday night.
Homeowner Lynne Kelley, who has been living in the area for nearly 10 years, said nothing like this has ever happened to them before.
“We heard a loud crash. I thought it was thunder,” she said.
Sadly for the family, this was no summer storm.
“The first thing we saw was a motor on our patio,” she said.
The out-of-control vessel crashed into the Kelleys’ backyard by the sea and left a path of destruction.
“I’m still in shock, I’m sick to my stomach,” said Kelley. “They removed the motors, at least, off the property. The boat got towed at 2 in the morning; they had to wait for high tide. I believe he hit that post out there.”
The red post, a channel marker, is now leaning, missing its reflective signage and red light.
U.S. Coast Guard crews were at the scene of the crash Wednesday morning, They installed a temporary fix to the channel marker.
“It ricocheted and just flew at us,” said Kelley.
Cellphone video captured the center console of the boat, its bow shredded apart by the impact.
The boat, sitting on its lift, was most likely totaled, and its twin outboards were thrown across the Kelleys’ patio.
“If the tiki hut wasn’t here, we probably would’ve been dead, ’cause I think the motor would have went through our window,” said Kelley.
The family was sitting under the same tiki hut just hours earlier.
“I’m thankful, thankful to be here,” said Kelley. “We’re out here every night, having a glass of wine, and fortunately, we went in early.”
The incident serves as a reminder for boaters to think twice and slow down.
“I don’t understand why on the Intracoastal you are allowed to go fast, and believe me, I sometime wanna get where I gotta go and don’t love going slow, but it is so dangerous,” said Kelley.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is leading the investigation. As of Wednesday evening, there is no update on the boat captain’s condition.
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