Photo by: wsvn
A 13-year-old girl was killed and another teenage girl was seriously injured in a personal watercraft crash in Fort Lauderdale, authorities said.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene of the incident in a residential neighborhood near the Intracoastal Waterway and Northeast 24th Court, just after 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
According to initial reports, one of the girls was out of the water and unconscious.
Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said the victims were riding the watercraft when it slammed into a dock.
Fort Lauderdale Police’s Marine Unit also responded to the crash to assist.
Rescue crews rushed both victims to Broward Health Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
7News cameras captured paramedics as they wheeled one of the victims, her neck in a cervical collar, into the hospital.
Tuesday evening, FWC officials confirmed one of the victims succumbed to her injuries. She was going to turn 14 in September.
The extent of the surviving victim’s injuries is unknown.
“This is a heartbreaking loss for everyone involved in this community,” said FWC spokesperson Tyson Matthews.
Area resident Renée Beninate spoke with 7News.
“My heart just dropped hearing the update, honestly,” she said.
Beninate said she knew something terrible had happened when rescue vehicles gathered at the end of her street.
“Engine, engine after engine and then police cars,” she said. “So many people love spending time on the water, and I’m sure they were having a great day before, and to just hear about this, in the end of summer, is just really heartbreaking.”
A source told 7News the victims were sisters, and their family is from New York.
Cellphone video captured the girls’ parents speaking with investigators, who spent hours at the scene gathering what they could.
Back at the hospital, family members and others arrived to comfort the girls’ parents and monitor the surviving victim’s condition.
“It’s just really upsetting to hear. My heart and prayers go out to their family members right now,” said Beninate.
The girls identities were not released.
FWC continues to investigate the incident.
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Source: wsvn
