Police following tips on hit-and-run boating accident
Natural Resources Police are following up on about a dozen leads, "some of them very promising," in the aftermath of a hit-and-run boating accident last Saturday that injured a sailor from Northern Virginia.
The department has released a photo of a boat that the victim and witnesses say is a similar model and color to striking vessel.
Mark Gentile, 55, suffered two broken legs when a powerboat that witnesses said was traveling about 40 knots (46 mph) came close to the stern of his anchored sailboat and struck him.
"I tried to get out of his way and it was boom, boom and the next thing you know, I was just floating in the water," Gentile told WUSA-TV from his hospital bed at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.
Maryland marine law requires boaters to have an adequate lookout and to travel at a safe speed for conditions. The area of the Chesapeake Bay at Thomas Point between Fishing Creek and South River is popular on weekends, attracting a motley flotilla ranging from small sailboats and personal watercraft to lightning-fast cigarette boats and fishing boats.
Gentile attempted to avoid the collision by diving below the surface but the boat struck both of his legs, shattering the bones.
"I'm going to die," Gentile told the TV station as he recalled the accident. "A few more minutes, I'll be out of blood."
NRP Sgt. Art Windemuth said it could have been worse.
"If he didn't have the presence of mind to swim and dive away from the boat, it would have struck him about the torso and head," he said.
Gentile was rescued by NRP Officer Murray Hunt and Coast Guard personnel who jumped into the water as the injured man slipped below the surface.
NRP is looking for a white, 21-foot Donzi speedboat, with beige or champagne trim. Witnesses said the occupants were a man and a woman in their 30s or 40s.
"We've received quite a few leads, about a dozen. Nothing definitive, but some of them very promising," Windemuth said. "We are in the process of following up on them."
Anyone with information about the boat or who witnessed the accident should call NRP Communication Center at 410-260-8888 or toll free at 800-628-9944 and ask for Officer Hunt.
