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Sturgeon collision injures Old Town
child
June 25, 2007
Contact: Karen Parker (386) 758-0525
A jumping sturgeon injured a 6-year-old girl
Sunday while she was riding in a boat on the Suwannee River near
the Yellow Jacket boat ramp.
Taylor Lane Owen, 6, of Old Town, was a
passenger in a 20-foot Proline vessel, according to Florida Fish
and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officials.
Taylor was riding with her mother, Wendy Gordon,
31; her father, Jack Gordon, 48; and her brother, Justin Gordon,
2; all from Old Town, and her aunt, Kelly Claflin, 20, of
Williston.
The boat was just north of the Yellow Jacket
boat ramp, approximately 9 miles west of Chiefland, FWC
officials said. The vessel, operated by Jack Gordon, was
traveling at about 20 miles per hour.
Claflin was sitting on the left side of the boat
between the bow and the console, behind Taylor, who was on a
folding chair on the bow of the vessel. A 3-foot sturgeon jumped
out of the river, striking Taylor and Clafin. Taylor suffered a
leg fracture and Clafin sustained bruises and cuts.
Taylor was transported to Shands Hospital in
Gainesville by emergency medical services personnel.
The sturgeon jumped back into the water.
“This is the third confirmed sturgeon strike of
2007,” said Maj. Bruce Hamlin, regional commander for FWC’s
North Central Region, based in Lake City. “Four people have been
injured. That’s four too many.”
The major went on to say the FWC is putting
increased emphasis on the public awareness campaign about the
sturgeon in the Suwannee.
“We have been actively engaging the public on
the dangers of these jumping sturgeon for more than a year. We
had 10 people injured last year, and we’ve had four people
injured this year. FWC has placed warning signs at all the boat
ramps along the river, and we are distributing decals, warning
boaters of the jumping sturgeon and to go slow while boating on
the Suwannee,” Hamlin said.
“However, we are looking to do more. We plan to
put new signs on the river at boat docks and businesses so the
boating public can see the signs while they’re on the water,”
Hamlin said. “We’re interested in talking with homeowners on the
Suwannee River who would be willing to place a sturgeon warning
sign on their docks.
“We are also looking for suggestions from the
public as to how we can make this campaign even more effective.
If anyone has an idea how we can get the word out to those folks
recreating on the Suwannee River, we’d like to hear it,” Hamlin
said.
The public can send in ideas via e-mail to
Karen.Parker@MyFWC.com
or to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, 3377 E.
U.S. Hwy. 90, Lake City, FL 32055. Folks with ideas also can
call the FWC regional office at (386) 758-0525. |
