2 kids hospitalized after mangrove crash as vessel operator ejected into water near Keewaydin Island

KEEWAYDIN ISLAND, Fla. —

A vessel operator was ejected after hitting the wake of a larger vessel and two kids were hospitalized after the vessel crashed into the mangroves near Keewaydin Island Sunday.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, officers responded to a boating crash in Collier County, which involved a vessel with an operator and two kids aboard traveling south.

While traveling, the vessel passed a larger vessel. The wake knocked the vessel operator into the water before continuing on and hitting the mangroves, FWC said.

The operator in the water was not injured, but the two kids were hospitalized, officers said.

This is an active investigation.

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