Two boats were traveling together with a total of 10 people, when one vessel hit the dock, said Liz Barraco, a spokeswoman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
About five people were on the boat that crashed. It happened about 8 p.m. near the 3200 block of Northeast 38th Street, according to Deputy Chief Timothy Heiser of Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue.
Neighbors said the boaters may have been in their late teens or early 20s. The names of the boaters haven't been released, and officials said it was too early to tell what caused the crash.
At least one person was thrown from the vessel as a result of the collision, said Leonardo Rivas, of Fort Lauderdale. He said he saw first responders pulling the person out of the Intracoastal Waterway, and then giving him first aid and trying to resuscitate him.
Carly Landi, another resident, said the crash was loud. "It sounded like a transformer blew — a big boom," she said.
The wildlife commission, as well as Fort Lauderdale police and fire rescue, were at the scene after the crash. Relatives of the boaters showed up, too. One parent told a police officer, "We're here to pick up our daughter." Parents stayed behind the police tape, waiting to be reunited with their children. One parent become visibly upset, crying and shaking.
The wildlife commission will be leading the investigation, "sifting through all the information so we can find out what led to this," Barraco said. It "is going to be a long process."
[email protected], 561-243-6624 or Twitter @AnneBoca
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