McEWEN e@ca.on.simcoe_county.nottawasaga.collingwood.the_connection 2003-07-18 published
category e is education election employment athletics
Collingwood man killed in Muskoka mishap
Angela McEWEN,
Connection
Staff
Writer, page 1
An early-morning boating excursion on Lake Joseph last weekend
ended in tragedy for a Collingwood family, and heartache for
a second one.
Peter CROMPTON, 27, is dead after a boating collision on July
13, at 5: 30 a.m.
"The one boat operated by (one Toronto man) was stationary in
the water, and the second boat operated by (another Toronto man),
hit the back end and landed on top of the boat," said Const.
Kristine DAWSON, community services officer with the West Parry
Sound Ontario Provincial Police.
"The three people who were injured were sitting in the back of
the boat."
CROMPTON was pronounced dead at the scene. Clay
DOLAN, 24, also
from Collingwood, suffered serious injuries and was airlifted
to Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto.
His brother, Josh, 32, from Toronto, was treated for minor injuries
at the West Parry Sound Health Centre.
On Wednesday afternoon, officials at Sunnybrook listed the younger
DOLAN's condition as fair.
The first boat was carrying eight people, and the second boat
had five people in it. The maximum number of people allowed in
a boat depends on the size of the vessel, said
DAWSON.
After an investigation, police charged the 22-year-old driver
of the second boat with impaired driving causing death, impaired
driving causing bodily harm, driving with a blood alcohol level
over 80 mg, criminal negligence causing death, criminal negligence
causing bodily harm and careless boating.
A court date is set for October 2.
Drinking and operating a water vessel is as dangerous as operating
a motor vehicle on a roadway or snowmobile trail. Approximately
25 to 40 per cent of boating accidents involve alcohol according
to Staff Sgt. Brad
SCHLORFF, with general headquarters in Orillia.
"In Ontario this year, on average, about 50 people will get killed
in boating fatalities," said
SCHLORFF "(
But) it's not that common
that a boat collides with another."
Usually boats end up hitting docks or something along the shoreline,
he said. Out of the 50 people who die annually, about 42 are
drownings and the rest are accidents involving boat collisions,
said SCHLORFF.
"First of all, (a person's) balance is affected, and when you
fall down in your boat, you fall overboard and then run the risk
of drowning," said
SCHLORFF. "
You're not in a stable platform."
For the past 20 years, the public has been inundated with warnings
about the hazards of drinking and operating a boat, he added.
The message, apparently, is still not getting through to a significant
number of people.
CROMPTON is a graduate of Collingwood's National Ski Academy
and was a member of the Ontario Alpine Ski Team. He competed
in the World University Games, the U.S.A. Junior Championships
and the Nor-Am Race Series, both nationally and internationally.
The visitation for
CROMPTON was held at Fawcett's Funeral Home
Collingwood chapel on Wednesday evening, and the funeral took
place Thursday afternoon at Trinity United Church.
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