TAUNTON, MA : Two Maine men injured, one NH man dead after speed boat crash on Saturday, 10th September 2016

One person was killed after three speed boats collided during a race on Watson’s Pond in Taunton on Saturday afternoon, officials said.

Shortly after 1 p.m., a boat in the Bill Giles Memorial Regatta spun out at 65 mph and was struck by a boat trailing close behind and then a third boat, according to the Taunton Fire Department.

All three boat drivers were ejected and the driver of the second boat was declared dead at the scene, Fire Chief Timothy Bradshaw said in a statement.

The driver who was killed was identified as a 39-year-old New Hampshire man, according to the Bristol County district attorney’s office.The driver of the third boat, a 67-year-old Maine man, is listed in critical condition and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, according to the Fire Department and Massachusetts State Police.

The Taunton Fire Department’s Dive Team was on scene for the race and pulled all three drivers out of the water.

The driver of the first boat, a 72-year-old Maine man, suffered minor injuries, according to the Fire Department.

The victims cannot be publicly identified at this time pending next of kin notification.

Sgt. Thomas Ryan of the Massachusetts State Police said the crash is under investigation by the Environmental Police.

Watson Pond falls under the jurisdiction of the Environmental Police because it is in the Watson Pond State Park, Ryan said.

The Bill Giles Memorial Regatta is run by the South Shore Outboard Association and features races in 10 hydroplane classes from a junior division to the D-Stock Hydros with 50 horsepower engines.

Hydroplanes are 9 to 12 feet long and designed to rise up out of the water when at speed, allowing the boats to skip over the surface faster than boats with hulls that displace water.

This is the 33rd running of the race. It was renamed this year for Bill Giles, a boat racer who founded and directed the regatta for many years.

Participants can win trophies from this race and also points toward an overall trophy in a competition sanctioned by the national American Power Boat Association.

Rhode Island Hospital in Providence is designated as the regional hospital for serious trauma cases.

The race was scheduled to run heats on both Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

Officers with the South Shore Outboard Association could not be reached for comment Saturday afternoon.

Source :
Two Maine men injured, one NH man dead after speed boat crash