Rider hospitalized after water scooter crash
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A crash involving a personal watercraft and a boat sent one person to the hospital on Thanksgiving.
The crash happened around 12:30 p.m. a mile north of the Treasure Island Causeway Bridge in unicorporated Pinellas County.
According to Pinellas deputies, a boat was traveling southbound in the Intercostal Waterway and passed 26-year-old Adam Kotz, who was operating his Sea Doo personal watercraft. Kotz accelerated jumping the wake of the boat. Afterwards, Kotz immediately turned around and tried to make another attempt at jumping the boat's wake.
At the same time, two other boats were traveling northbound in the area. The first boat was piloted by 19-year-old Isreal Rodriguez, and his 20-year-old passenger, Graziana Gladden.
Rodriguez and Gladden both saw Kotz cross in front of them eastbound, jumping the wake, but did not expect him to abruptly make a U-turn into their path. Their boat crashed into the left side of the Sea Doo, throwing Kotz into the water.
The pair and people in the boat behind him got Kotz out of the water and called 9-1-1.
Kotz was brought aboard the second vessel and both boats proceeded to the Jungle Prada boat ramp in St. Petersburg.
Kotz had serious, but non-life threatening injuries and was transported to Bayfront Health St. Petersburg.
The investigation continues.