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MISSING BOATERS FOUND DEAD
November 30, 2006
Contact: FWC Officer Kat Kelley (352) 427-6728
A third person within a month has died in Lake
County boating incidents. None of the victims was wearing a life
jacket.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC) officials have urged boaters repeatedly to wear
approved personal flotation devices.
Gregory K. Craine, 52, Groveland, was found at 8
a.m. Wednesday in the 26.2-acre Sunset Lake in Mascott. He had
been missing since 4:25 p.m. Tuesday, when the boat he was on
sank.
Also on Wednesday, searchers found the body of a
man missing in a Seminole County lake.
FWC officers, with assistance from Lake County Sheriff’s Office
dive team members, had been searching for Craine since being
called Tuesday afternoon about a boat sinking.
He and Anthony Williams, also of Groveland, were
fishing when one of them lost his balance, causing the boat to
roll over to one side and sink.
Neither man could swim, but Williams was wearing
a life jacket and made it safely to shore.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office dive team members found Craine
within 20 feet of his submerged 12-foot johnboat.
“This is the third fatality involving
individuals not wearing life jackets in Lake County within the
month,” said FWC Lt. David Adams. “We urge everyone to wear a
personal floatation device whether they can swim or not.”
On Nov. 12, two Summerfield children drowned in
Lake Yale during a family outing.
FWC Officer Kat Kelley emphasized the importance
of wearing a life jacket, with fatal boating accidents
increasing to a 10-year high in 2005.
“Both of these incidents involved small vessels
on inland lakes,” Kelley said. “Statistically, last year 79
percent of fatal accidents involving fall-overboards occurred
aboard vessels 17-feet-long or shorter. Additionally, 69 percent
of these accidents occurred on calm, inland waters such as
lakes, ponds and rivers.”
Kelley said the FWC also encourages boaters to
take a boating safety course, which they can do by going to
MyFWC.com/boating and clicking on the
Boating Safety
tab.
“Often, a bad decision leads to a cascade of
events that can impact people’s lives forever,” Kelley said. “We
want people to enjoy Florida’s waters safely.”
In the second incident, FWC officers assisted
the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office with a search on Lake
Howell for David Ripberger, 40, Casselberry, who was reported
missing about noon Tuesday after friends had not seen him in
nearly 24 hours. Officers found his boat offshore in Lake Howell
with some of his personal items onboard, including his wallet
and cell phone.
Ripberger’s body was found at 2:45 p.m.
Wednesday, about 150 feet from his boat, by dive teams from
Seminole and Volusia counties. The Seminole County Sheriff's
Office is investigating his death.
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