Many Minnesota residents can choose to enjoy a day out on the water. However, these days can take a turn if someone acts negligently. When people go boating and don’t prioritize safety, they can cause serious collisions. While wrecks may not be on the boat occupants’ minds when they’re out on the water, there are still dangerous decisions that can lead to accidents and injuries. If you or a loved one has been harmed because of someone else’s negligence, then you can seek help from our Minnesota boating accident lawyer. We will represent your rights and fight for you to recover compensation for your injuries and damages.
Boating Accident Statistics and Injuries
Unfortunately, boating fatalities and accidents happen each year. During 2020, there were 16 boating fatalities and 90 non-fatal boating accidents. While there are more non-fatal accidents, it doesn’t mean that people weren’t severely hurt. Injuries sustained from a boating accident can have permanent consequences.
Head injuries, spinal cord injuries, burn injuries, broken bones, and severe lacerations are possible injuries that may take weeks or months to heal. While these are similar accidents to a car wreck, the water also causes other potential life-threatening dangers.
Hypothermia can be a concern if someone is in the water for too long and their body temperature drops. While this is less likely to occur in the warm summer months, the water can still be cold enough to lower someone’s body temperature.
At first, hypothermia can make you shiver or feel numb. As the core body temperature continues to drop, you lips can turn blue and your breathing can slow. Your consciousness could be affected. You may also feel warm at this stage. When the body temperature gets too low, eventually the heart will stop.
Another danger is drowning. In a collision, boat occupants can be thrown overboard. If someone cannot swim, doesn’t have a life jacket, or is too severely injured to stay afloat, they may not be able to tread water or swim to safety.
When Madia Law is fighting for you, we’ll assess the injuries you or your loved one sustained. The damages and losses of your injuries shouldn’t be left on you to handle alone. With Madia Law as your attorneys, we will seek full and fair compensation for you.
For a legal consultation with a boating accident lawyer serving Minneapolis, call 612-349-2729
What Causes Boating Wrecks?
As we looks into the accident that harmed you, we’ll search for the cause of the collision. It’s possible one of the following common reasons are why your boating wreck happened:
- Boating While Intoxicated. If the person operating the boat is over the legal limit, their judgment and reaction times may be severely slowed and are more likely to make a mistake. They can receive a BWI—which will have consequences like a DWI.
- Speeding. When the person operating the watercraft is speeding in a no-wake zone, they risk losing control of their boat and can also collide with another boat, dock, or person. Minnesota law states that boats cannot go faster and create wake when they’re within 150 feet of the shoreline, dock, a swimmer, rafts, moored watercraft, or when they’re towing someone on skis or a float.
- Inexperience. The person operating the boat may not have the experience necessary to do so. They may make a mistake that could cause a collision. This could also mean they don’t see the warning signs of danger: choppy waters, a sudden drop in temperature, and dark skies are all weather conditions where you shouldn’t be out on the water.
- Distraction. Operators may not realize that they have to be attentive at all times. If the operator is looking at their phone, talking to others on the boat, or is doing something else that takes their eyes off the water, they could collide with another boat or run aground.
- Mechanical Failure. If a part of the boat malfunctions, the person operating the boat may lose control and not be able to prevent an accident from occurring.
Whether the cause of the accident was a negligent boat operator or a defective part of the machinery, our Minneapolis boating accident lawyer will find out. Then, we can see how the responsible party acted reckless and how their actions caused your injuries. Let’s look at the outcomes that negligence can cause while using watercraft.
Minneapolis Boating Accident Lawyer Near Me 612-349-2729
Types of Non-Fatal Boating Accidents
When negligence occurs, there are a number of accidents that can happen. In Minnesota, colliding with another watercraft was the most common non-fatal boating accident, with 26 incidents in 2020.
Other accidents include water sport mishaps, like when one uses water skis, wakeboards, or tubes. Additional accidents that can occur include fires and explosions, sinking or flooding, capsizing, falling overboard, being struck by the propeller, and colliding with a fixed object.
Non-fatal boating accidents are reported when there’s an injury beyond first aid, at least $2,000 in property damage, or there’s a total loss of the boat.
If you’re looking at a long recovery because of boating accident injuries, you need to have a reliable boating accident lawyer on your side who will fight for you. Madia understands how serious your injuries can be and how your life could be permanently affected because of them. We’ll look at all the evidence available that shows who was negligent, how they caused the accident, and how their actions harmed you. Then, we’ll show that your injuries have caused significant losses that will affect your future.
While it can be overwhelming to think of the path to recovery ahead of you, but you don’t have to do it alone. We’ll be at your side fighting for your economic and noneconomic losses. This includes your medical expenses, lost wages, diminished earning capacity, loss of enjoyment of life, and distress.
We’ll seek the financial security you need so you can cover the costs without worrying about how you’ll make the payments. With this foundation, you can work on healing.
Click to contact our Minneapolis Personal Injury Trial Lawyers today
Get the Help You Need Today
Madia Law protects people who have been injured because of the negligent actions of others. We are aware of the life-threatening injuries that can arise from a boating accident, and how a reckless decision can change someone’s life in an instant.
You deserve representation that will protect your best interests. You can have this peace of mind when a Minnesota boating accident lawyer from Madia Law is representing you. Contact our office today.
Call 612-349-2729 or complete a Case Evaluation form
