{"id":26088,"date":"2025-04-28T13:21:16","date_gmt":"2025-04-28T13:21:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=26088"},"modified":"2025-04-28T13:21:16","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T13:21:16","slug":"mass-casualty-incident-declared-after-clearwater-boat-crash-leaving-1-dead-and-several-hurt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=26088","title":{"rendered":"‘Mass Casualty Incident’ Declared After Clearwater Boat Crash, Leaving 1 Dead and Several Hurt"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The devastating crash happened when one vessel struck a ferry, resulting in numerous injuries. Authorities are now looking for more information about the vessel’s driver and owner.<\/p>\n

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A tragic boat crash near the Memorial Causeway bridge in Clearwater has led to the declaration of a mass casualty incident, leaving one person dead and several others injured.<\/p>\n

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First responders helping the injured at the crash site, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Clearwater Police Department, in cooperation with the Clearwater Fire Department, responded to\u00a0the crash<\/a>\u00a0that occurred around 8:40 p.m. Sunday evening, April 29, involving the Clearwater Ferry, which was carrying more than 40 passengers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Clearwater Ferry, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The crash, which occurred when another vessel\u00a0struck the ferry<\/a>, has left some families worried and others praying for quick recovery for their loved one. The boat that collided with the ferry fled the scene, prompting an investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The boat that crashed into the ferry, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“The severity of the injuries has led to the declaration of a mass casualty incident by the fire department,” Clearwater Police\u00a0wrote<\/a>\u00a0in an alert on X. “Multiple trauma alerts have been called, and helicopters have transported two of the more seriously injured. Drivers should avoid Memorial Causeway.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Clearwater Ferry, which eventually came to rest on a sandbar just south of the Memorial Causeway bridge, had more than\u00a040 people<\/a>\u00a0on board at the time of the collision. All passengers and crew members, several injured,\u00a0were removed<\/a>\u00a0from the boat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Police at the crash site, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Rob Shaw, who is with the City of Clearwater confirmed that there were 45 people on board the ferry during the crash, including two crew members. He also stated that six individuals were categorized\u00a0as trauma alerts<\/a>, with two of them being airlifted to Baycare Health for treatment of various minor injuries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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However, despite efforts to save those injured,\u00a0one person succumbed<\/a>\u00a0to their injuries from the crash. The U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, which responded to the scene, confirmed the collision between the Clearwater Ferry and the recreational vessel, also stating that investigations are underway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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First responders helping the injured, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“We will continue to update as more information becomes available,” the U.S. Coast Guard\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0on social media. As authorities work to determine the cause of\u00a0the crash<\/a>, Clearwater residents and visitors are advised to avoid the Memorial Causeway area as law enforcement\u00a0continues their investigation<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Clearwater Ferry at the Memorial Causeway area, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Shaw also\u00a0shared<\/a>, “We believe the boat responsible for hitting the ferry left the scene immediately and we believe our law enforcement partners are at another location with that boat right now, but we are still asking anybody who has information anyone that witnessed anything anyone that may have any video to contact us.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Meanwhile, some of those involved in the crash have spoken to media outlets. Brenda Alvarez, who is 31 weeks pregnant,\u00a0shared<\/a>, “We are actually going to go to the hospital right now to get checked because I’m a little worried I haven’t felt the baby move. It’s very scary. I fell between two seats, and my whole body hurts right now.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Alvarez added that all they wanted at the moment was to reach their cars and go home, admitting that they never expected anything like this to happen. She expressed confusion over how fast the other vessel was going and how it was possible for them to hit the ferry and escape the scene.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Brenda Alvarez and Marco Vacheco, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“We have a 3-year-old and 1-year-old with us, and I’m pregnant, and I don’t know, it’s horrible. It shattered the whole back of the boat, left a huge dent,” she\u00a0narrated<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Alvarez’s husband, Marco Vacheco, also shared his account, explaining how the boat\u00a0struck the ferry<\/a>\u00a0from behind, crashing through the area where the captain sits and knocking passengers over.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Brenda Alvarez and Marco Vacheco, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Despite the chaos, the couple did their best to remain calm for their children and assist those around them, with Vacheco even helping others with\u00a0open wounds<\/a>\u00a0on the boat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Marco Vacheco, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Those on board the ferry are left with lingering questions about who was driving the other boat and what caused the collision, with many seeking answers. Luckily, officials have\u00a0located the boat<\/a>\u00a0that struck the ferry, but details about its ownership and the identity of the driver have not been released.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The boat was seen\u00a0being towed<\/a>\u00a0ashore, with investigators taking photos and inspecting the damage. It’s a large recreational vessel equipped with three engines and a large console where the driver operates it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Authorities may release more information about the boat’s make and model in the coming days. They have also urged anyone with information about the crash to come forward.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The boat that crashed into the ferry being towed, from a post dated April 28, 2025 | Source: Youtube\/@10TampaBay<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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As people on board are treated for their physical injuries and others heal from the trauma, many have commended the swift response to the incident, which undoubtedly saved lives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Clearwater’s Mayor Bruce Rector\u00a0expressed<\/a>\u00a0gratitude, “We are thankful for our Clearwater and Pinellas County first responders, the US Coast Guard, and the Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife for acting so quickly to save lives and investigate the incident.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It is now a time of hope and anticipation as those affected look forward to a swift recovery, while the ongoing investigation offers the possibility of closure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      The devastating crash happened when one vessel struck a ferry, resulting in numerous injuries. Authorities are now looking for more information about the vessel’s driver and owner. … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26088","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26088"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26088\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26090,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26088\/revisions\/26090"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/26089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}