Captain arrested in tragic Florida Keys parasailing incident: According to authorities, a Florida Keys boat skipper detain on a manslaughter allegation on Thursday about a fatal parasailing trip this year.
The captain, Daniel Gavin Couch, 49, charge with failing to check the weather before the May 30 voyage and severing the towline to his passengers’ parasail during severe gusts, according to an arrest warrant.
Supraja Alaparthi, 33, passed away, and her son, 10, and nephew, 9, suffered injuries. They came from Illinois and were guests.
Couch was arrested Thursday for manslaughter and commercial parasailing violations, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
According to FWC Maj. Alberto Maza, a regional commander in the organization’s law enforcement division, “there is no excuse for the recklessness and disdain for public safety that demonstrated in this case.”
According to online jail records, Couch hold instead of $100,000 bail on Thursday night.
It wasn’t immediately apparent if he had a lawyer who could speak in his defense or if he had legally accused.
The FWC claimed that Couch had not recently checked the weather before taking 12 people on the parasailing tour on May 30.
Strong winds prevented Alaparthi and the kids from winch back to the boat while they were in the air, and Couch cut the towline, according to the inquiry.
According to the arrest warrant, they plummeted and drag across the water by the parasail until they hit a structure on the Old Seven Mile Bridge.