1 dead in mass casualty event after boat crashes into Clearwater Ferry in Florida

(CLEARWATER, FL) -- One person was killed and 12 people were injured when a boat struck the Clearwater Ferry in Clearwater, Florida, on Sunday evening.

All of the injured individuals were people on the ferry, according to the Clearwater Police Department. BayCare Health System said it received a total of nine patients on Sunday night at three of their hospitals, and said Monday all but one have been treated and released.

There were 45 people aboard the ferry, including two crew members, when it was hit by a passing boat, police said.

The boat that struck the ferry fled the scene, Clearwater police said in a social media post on Sunday night. Authorities said it was later found by a responding agency.

"It’s been declared a mass casualty incident by the fire department due to the number of injuries. All local hospitals have been notified," Clearwater police wrote in a post on X on Sunday night.

"Multiple trauma alerts have been called with helicopters transporting two of the more seriously injured," the post continued.

The incident took place near the Memorial Causeway Bridge in Clearwater. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg was notified at approximately 8:40 p.m., the Seventh Coast Guard District wrote on X.

After the crash, the ferry came to rest on a sand bar just south of the bridge. First responders and emergency personnel were then able to remove "all patients and passengers" from the ferry, police said.

"We were just enjoying the ride, and then all of a sudden we hear the first mate yelling, 'Hey, hey, hey,'" one passenger told Tampa ABC affiliate WFTS.

"And then we looked back behind us and this big yacht just came through the boat," said the passenger, who was riding the ferry with his two kids and his wife, who is 31 weeks pregnant with the couple's third child.

The Coast Guard said there were six people on board the recreational boat, which left the scene.

"The boat that fled the scene has been identified by another law enforcement agency," Clearwater police said. However, further details about the second vessel involved in the incident have not yet been made available.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will be taking the lead on the crash investigation, police said.

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