One person is dead and a second is seriously injured after a day out on the water turned deadly for a group of people out on personal watercraft earlier this week.
On Saturday, just before 3 p.m., Central Hastings Ontario Provincial Police, the Marmora and Lake Fire Department and Hastings-Quinte Paramedic Services responded to a collision involving two personal watercraft on Crowe River, near Crowe Lake and Marmora.
Police say a watercraft with two people on it struck the rear of another with two people on it.
OPP Sgt. Ed Sanchuck says the driver of the watercraft in front was transported to the hospital by ambulance with serious injuries, while the 40-year-old male passenger from Quinte West was pronounced dead.
Sanchuck says all the people involved in the crash are adults but could not say if the drivers knew each other.
The four occupants were all wearing life-jackets during the collision.
“If you become involved in the crash, the main focus is making sure your life-jacket is on you because it’s too late to put it on when you end up in the water. So it’s one of these things where we need people to make sure that they are aware of their surroundings at all times,” Sanchuck warns.
“My thoughts are going out to everyone who’s been affected by this tragedy, especially the family members of friends.”
The collision remains under investigation, and police are asking anyone in the area who might have video footage to contact the police.