1 killed when boat leaves water, flips upside down on West Fire Island

Thursday, August 10, 2023
WEST FIRE ISLAND, New York (WABC) -- An investigation is underway after a man was killed and another was injured when a boat crashed out of the water and flipped upside down before landing on a deck.

Authorities were notified of the incident Thursday just after 7:30 a.m. on West Fire Island in the Great South Bay.
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The two men on the boat were stranded on the remote island for hours until 47-year-old Christopher Cannella found a cellphone in the wreckage and called 911.

That sparked a frantic search for the victim.

He was located crashed into the home on the northwest corner of the island, so remote it isn't even on a street and doesn't have electricity or running water.

Cannella was rescued, along with his two dogs, and taken to South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore with serious injuries. He is expected to survive.



The Islip Fire Department said on social media that the dogs did not appear to be injured.

Cannella told rescuers the two came from Babylon and had been fishing when they crashed sometime during the night. The force of the crash knocked him unconscious, he believes for hours.
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While the cause of the crash remains under investigation, preliminarily it does not appear any criminality is involved but speed is a possible factor.

Detectives are asking anyone with information on the crash to call the Third Squad at 631-854-8352.

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