Doctor Diagnoses Scariest Boating Injuries

One of the most fun things you can do in the summer is go

out on a boat,

but it also happens to be one of the most dangerous.

Let's react to some unbelievable boating accidents.

>> Heart-stopping video as a speedboat goes airborne at 200 mph.

>> Oh, no.

Oh, my god.

OH, MY GOD.

OH, my god.

I'm glad it didn't make contact with the water until it made a few

rotations and slowed down

because that rapid deceleration is what causes shearing forces to the human body.

So, if it would have made contact with the water right after going airborne,

that's where things could have gotten really deadly.

>> The two men on board were trying to break a speed record on

Lake Havasu in Arizona.

>> God, it just it just doesn't look like the premise of where a

land water speed record should be broken.

Like, where are the first responders?

I don't know, it just looks like people hang out watching.

>> It flew like a kite.

It flipped.

It spun.

>> Ryan Ola is a member of the crew.

That's the wrecked vessel behind him. >> like fiberglass just tore apart.

>> Incredibly, the two men in the boat survived.

>> The safety capsule is designed to keep the drivers safe as possible.

One walked away with a broken collarbone and some broken ribs.

The other one would just had a fractured knee.

>> Wow, imagine just breaking your patella crashing at 200 mph.

I'll tell you what, cars are safe,

but if you're crashing 200 mph into a wall,

you're not just fracturing a patella.

>> A speedboat ride on Lake of the Ozarks turned crazy. >> this is like wild.

>> For this family, last month you've seen it.

It was all caught on tape.

The boat hit a large wake sending people flying.

>> Isn't the rule like you got to slow down once you hit the

first one?

My guy just went boom.

I mean, like I know I crashed my race car, but man,

this is on a different level.

>> They were all hurt.

Five were treated for minor to moderate injuries.

They're okay. >> fact

that all almost all of them hit their heads is the scariest part for

me.

I wouldn't be surprised if there's some facial fractures, nasal fractures.

They're hitting some very dense portions of the boat.

>> From Prosper, Texas to paradise,

Whitney Slow and her family enjoying the clear waters in the Bahamas.

>> I feel like I'm in a nightmare.

>> Until this boat came out of nowhere and never stopped.

>> I feel like I've been to this exact area of the Bahamas.

>> They know they hit him, they saw him, and they drove off.

>> It's like a hit and run, but with a boat.

So, is that a hit and run?

It's a hit and float.

>> Whitney's husband, Brent, snorkeling near the shores of Exuma before dinner.

When this boat, skimming along the shallows,

drove right over him. >> they could have totally not seen him, right?

Like, that you just might think you hit a wave or something.

>> Slicing his lower body.

>> Oh my god, they sliced his leg.

>> When the propeller hit him right underneath the buttocks and the legs.

>> Oh my god, there's the femoral arteries right there.

And if they hit the femoral artery,

that's you can't save someone that's in the water with that kind of injury.

Hopefully, it just hit muscle, didn't get to the arteries.

>> We hear Brent screaming, "Help me.

Help me.

Help me."

You know, um we didn't realize that he was struck by the boat.

>> Yeah, so like if they didn't know, the boat might have not known.

And you could see that his his toes are cyanotic,

they're not getting enough circulation.

>> Whitney, her family, friends, and good Samaritans pulling Brent out of the water,

wrapping towels around him to try and stop the bleeding.

>> Yeah, putting pressure, as much pressure on that area is of utmost importance.

If the bleeding was that severe and they had a tourniquet,

that would have been ideal.

Again, it depends where the um injury occurred.

Because when you want to apply a tourniquet to a bleeding limb,

you have to do it closer to the heart.

So, for example, if the cut is here,

you're going closer to the heart and putting the tourniquet here.

>> Four hours under the knife, this father now in good hands,

but with a fractured pelvis, leg, and a long road to recovery.

>> What a scary story.

So, I whenever you're in the water,

you always have to be head on a swivel.

Head on a swivel.

>> This nightmare begins miles off the coast of Chile in the South Pacific,

where the ship Discover is conducting oceanic and atmospheric research.

On a stunning day, crew members take a dip in the warm tropical waters,

but the afternoon turns into a horrifying scene.

>> Oh my god, tell me a shark is coming

and my worst nightmare is coming true.

>> Right out of jaws.

>> Oh, no. >> 60 minutes into the swim,

the fin of a massive great white suddenly surfaces.

>> What is the rule?

You got to punch it in the nose?

>> Heather Boswell is in the race for her life against a great white shark,

and she's losing.

>> Yeah, there's no way to win.

The speed that a great white shark travels in the water is exponentially faster

than a human.

>> People who were still screaming, you know, "Get Heather, get her out,

get her out."

And we had kind of a a tug-of-war with the shark trying to,

you know, give us BACK OUR SHIPMATE.

>> OH MY GOD,

and the blood in the water certainly doesn't help cuz

that gets the shark probably more aggravated. >> grabbed a hold of her,

and she became very light at that point.

And we kind of flung her up in the in the front of the

boat.

She came up really easy,

and we had seen that that her leg was gone.

>> It was cut off just as if a butcher had had used a saw.

>> This is going to sound dark,

but a clean cut sometimes can be life-saving

because the arteries sometimes can clamp

and cut off the circulation,

thereby decreasing the amount of exsanguination, losing blood. >> 20 hours from the nearest help,

Heather's life is now in the hands of the ship's nurse.

>> Tourniquet, commercial grade tourniquet, not T-shirt tourniquet, commercial grade, with a ratchet.

>> After months of painful rehabilitation, she now walks with a prosthetic leg.

>> Wow, I I'm so happy to hear that she survived.

>> This morning, a dream cruise sailing to a choppy ending after a norovirus outbreak.

>> You know, outbreaks happen

so commonly on cruise ships cuz it's a enclosed tight area,

lots of interpersonal interaction, utensils being shared, glasses being shared,

very easy for things to spread.

And norovirus is kind of the common one,

even though cruise ships aren't the only place where norovirus outbreaks happen.

It just seems to be the cruise ship virus of choice.

>> The CDC says at least 94 passengers

and four crew members aboard Royal Caribbean Serenade of the Seas battled the bug

during the voyage.

>> Ideally, you got to quarantine the ship.

>> Including Bob Pattis, who was on the 13-day cruise with his son.

>> I'm 87 years old.

I've never never been this sick in my life.

>> That makes them high risk.

Anyone with pre-existing cardiac conditions, weakened immune systems,

older or very young are at the highest risk for having a negative outcome

from norovirus.

>> The ship docking in Miami this morning as scheduled,

becoming this year's 19th gastrointestinal illness outbreak on a cruise ship so far,

sailing past the total number seen in 2024, according to the CDC,

and making it the worst year for cruise outbreaks in more than a decade.

>> God, cruise ship companies are really struggling from norovirus, flu cases,

COVID 5 years ago, now hantavirus.

It's a scary time to go on a cruise.

>> Sarah Kirby is one of the few people in the world who knows

what it's like to fall off a cruise ship

and live to tell about it.

>> God, is that even I mean, obviously it's possible cuz she did it.

Cuz like, if you hit water at the height

that a passenger deck is from a cruise ship,

it's like hitting cement and survive.

>> In 2012, she slipped over her stateroom balcony.

>> Was she running towards it?

Like, how did that slip happen?

>> Infrared cameras captured her fall.

She actually ricocheted off a lifeboat before hitting the choppy waters off the coast

of Jamaica.

>> Honestly, it's a lifeboat that probably saved her.

>> Sarah was badly battered.

>> She has a subconjunctival hemorrhage there, which actually isn't super problematic,

but those raccoon eyes could be a sign of a basilar skull fracture.

That would be concerning.

>> But somehow managed to tread water for 90 minutes. >> 90 minutes despite

having that level of trauma.

I know cruise ships have alarms

that they have sensors

that detect if someone fell off,

but I wonder how in this specific case they knew.

Oh!

Oh!

Oh!

This is in Miami.

I've seen these clips.

Look at her.

Oh my god, her ankle getting caught there.

Oh my god, the poor ligaments of her ankle.

This is why boats are so dangerous.

Do they have seat belts?

I feel like boats should have seat belts.

I love that she hands her cell phone first.

It's like the dude at the baseball game who catches the ball

but never spills the beer.

Oh!

>> Is it in you?

>> Oh, yeah, big time.

>> God, that's a line you never want to hear from your buddy.

So, there is a clean mechanism for taking out fish hooks.

I don't recommend you try

and do this on your own cuz there always vital structures especially in the

neck.

I would more so just say cut the the fishing line

and go get a professional to take care of it.

But, there is a strategy where you push the bottom of the fish hook

down and then with a string you pull the fish hook up

and out.

Now, it really depends on the area cuz there are instances where sometimes you

can guide the hook further,

actually push it in because of that barb, cut the barb,

and then easily slide it out.

It really depends on the placement,

which is why I really want a medical professional to do this

and not on your own.

When heatstroke and seasickness take you out but not the crew.

Uh-oh.

You got to be careful here that this is in fact seasickness.

Two things can happen on a boat which are really problematic.

One is heatstroke, that requires severe medical attention, and also carbon monoxide poisoning.

People don't recognize that.

So, if a lot of people are experiencing something all at once,

think heatstroke carbon monoxide poisoning.

Oh!

This crew is okay.

That makes me feel better.

>> >> Watch this.

OH!

OH.

>> OUCH.

THAT MUST HURT.

>> Hold on a second.

I think I watched this Inside Edition.

Did he sue the living pants out of this boat company for this happening

to him cuz he said like it caused brain damage for the rest of

his life?

>> It happened on a Holland America luxury cruise liner, the MS Amsterdam.

Here's the question.

Is that smack on the head really worth 21 and 1/2 >> it.

I knew it.

>> Houseman's wife, Carol.

Carol, what happened >> Oh,

uh this anchor and I did a bunch of uh Inside Edition hits together.

>> The doctors thought originally that it was just um you know,

a a bump on the head.

There was a laceration.

>> I mean, post-concussion syndrome is absolutely real.

>> The family continued on their round-the-world cruise thinking

that rest and relaxation were exactly what Houseman needed after his injury.

But when the cruise was finally over, his condition only got worse.

>> Oh my god, I wonder

if he was bleeding internally from like a subdural hemorrhage

or something.

>> He says he suffered permanent brain damage.

>> He's not logical anymore, irritability, mood swings,

and then eventually he developed actually having seizures as well.

>> Houseman sued after he says he discovered

that at least 16 passengers had been injured in similar ways >> The issue

here is that they knew the door was dangerous

and they continued to let it operate.

That's the core of the issue, not the fact that this one incident happened.

>> Austin Gonsalves loves to fish.

So it was no surprise he jumped at the opportunity for a dream vacation

spear fishing in the Bahamas.

>> I remember eating the fish.

I remember diving the day we ate the fish.

And then I remember waking up in Miami a week later.

>> It was then they learned a fish they caught was loaded with poison

putting the 15-year-old in a coma.

It's called ciguatera poisoning.

>> Yeah, ciguatera poisoning is really dangerous because it's invisible.

It's tasteless.

Cooking the fish doesn't solve it.

Freezing the fish doesn't solve it cuz it's a toxin.

It happens from like toxic algae

that these uh larger predatory fish eat up enormous amounts

and it builds up within their bodies

and then humans eat them.

So, you got to be really careful about A,

avoiding those types of fish and there's a whole list here, but in general,

really scary stuff.

Especially the way that it happens.

It has some pretty unique symptoms outside of the basic nausea, vomiting, GI distress.

You also start feeling cold as hot and hot as cold.

You start having a metallic taste in your mouth.

Almost feeling like your teeth are loose.

Really unique symptoms.

>> You have a one in 50 chance to get it

if you eat large fish in

that region.

>> Yeah, I believe if the fish is over 5 lbs,

it's a reef fish that increases the risk.

>> That's why biologists recommend avoiding large fish for dinner.

>> Uh no smell, no taste.

>> Correct.

>> No way to tell that the fish is has the poison.

>> There's also certain uh parts within the fish where the toxin can accumulate,

so you want to avoid eating those parts listed here.

>> The only reason they can talk about their warning is

because of his mother's natural reaction after the four started violently vomiting.

>> And I remember calling the ambulance

and that's the last thing I remember for several days.

>> And here's the scary part.

There is no cure.

It's just about supportive care, giving fluids, making sure that the heart is stable,

electrolytes are stable.

Like there is no antidote.

>> He started physical therapy this week

and has a sense of humor about the near-death poisoning.

His friends brought Austin this movie to help the recovery.

>> A little Finding Nemo never hurts.

If I got fish poisoning and my friends brought me Finding Nemo,

I'd be finding new friends.

>> A literal nightmare

that fisherman Scott Thompson is lucky he has lived to tell about after falling

overboard from his boat in the middle of the night in Ventura,

California.

>> Oh my god, that's the scary op it it reminds you of

that movie Open Water.

Oh my god, worst fears.

>> At that moment, he saw the bright light from this oil platform about

2 to 3 miles away. >> 2 to 3 miles away.

>> Scott made it to that platform,

but developed hypothermia from his exposure to the cold water.

>> Oh my god, hypothermia is

so scary on the open water

because it doesn't need to be frigid water.

That's a common mistake people have.

They think, "Oh, it's 50-60 degrees.

There's no way I'm going to get hypothermia."

No, no, when you're wet, it's windy, you could become hypothermic very quickly.

Hypothermia is a medical emergency,

and it's not about rapid rewarming because that could also be a problem.

It's about keeping the person calm, flat, and gradual rewarming after you call 911.

Also, you got to realize that some people when they develop hypothermia,

they start shivering in order to generate heat, and that is a good thing.

That is the body doing its thing.

However, once people stop shivering, the assumption is that they're getting better.

Well, it could be that they're fatiguing,

and they're no longer capable of generating enough heat,

and actually the illness is progressing worse.

Similarly how those who have an asthma attack,

they breathe very quickly to try

and get rid of this carbon dioxide that's trapped in their body.

And once they start breathing more slowly, people think they're getting better.

In reality, it's time to intubate.

>> But, there was something else motivating Scott to get to that platform,

a harbor seal.

>> NO WAY!

He added that for effect.

>> He says one swam alongside him for a

while giving him hope

and making him feel like he was not alone in the world.

>> It's interesting how humans can experience the same thing drastically differently.

If your doctor friend here was out in the open water thrown off his

vessel,

and unknown animal pops its head out, full panic attack, drowning.

You lost your favorite YouTuber.

That's how I'm going to go down.

Manatee attacks Dr.

Mice.

Make it the headline.

>> During this scorching summer, there's no better way to beat the heat than boating.

But, could a Could a invisible killer be lurking that people are unaware of?

Carbon monoxide?

>> Boats are actually supposed to have uh carbon monoxide detectors on them

because what can happen is

if you're traveling at low speeds

or even idling,

>> >> uh you can develop what's known

as a station wagon effect where actually the exhaust fumes start making their way

into the boat because wind changes the the circulation of the fumes

and it could poison everyone on board.

>> There have been 46 carbon monoxide deaths on boats in the last decade.

>> Well, maybe you shouldn't be reporting just casually standing up like

that on a wake boat.

>> But experts we spoke with say

that number may be higher since they can often be mistaken for drownings.

>> Donovan Chilton says it also happened to his son.

Thankfully, he survived.

>> Oxygen therapy is the mainstay of treatment

and the mechanism behind carbon monoxide poisoning is

that it binds to hemoglobin causing a compound known

as carboxyhemoglobin to form

and it is competitive,

more competitively binding to hemoglobin than oxygen.

So the hemoglobin that normally carries the oxygen around through your body starts having

carbon monoxide bind to it at a higher rate than the oxygen,

therefore you're not supplying your body with enough oxygen.

You literally start shutting down and people get sleepy.

They feel unwell.

Sometimes it's confused with seasickness

as we said earlier in the video

and people don't understand

and groups of people can lose their lives,

groups of people can drown, very very dangerous scenario.

>> So how can you get carbon monoxide poisoning on a boat out in

all that fresh air?

>> Could be a very calm,

humid day and carbon monoxide can collect in places that you wouldn't expect.

>> Yeah, most people think, "Oh, I'm outdoors,

carbon monoxide won't impact me." but that's absolutely not the case.

>> Using the special carbon monoxide detector,

he showed us how carbon monoxide gas can build up,

especially on the back of older boats with inboard engines

that he says are less effective at diffusing it.

>> Let's put it in the exhaust stream and see what happens.

Here we have your definite CO obviously

and if I move it up

and it's starting to dissipate very rapidly.

We're down down to 40.

Just a few steps and you could be in the clear zone absolutely.

>> Yeah, just imagine you're sitting there hanging out talking with your friends

and without knowing you're inhaling all this carbon monoxide.

It's binding to the hemoglobin becoming a problem.

And sometimes people that are experiencing carbon monoxide poisoning look flushed.

So it's not something that you think is related to lack of oxygen.

You think it's probably sea sickness,

but in reality it's this this hidden danger that's found on boats.

>> The Bones Flying Roos win back-to-back at the New Zealand Grand Prix today

claiming two wins in two years in Auckland,

but there was ONE MAJOR DIFFERENCE.

>> OH, THE THE FOOT THE foot the the slang of the raceboat.

>> If the French bow was even half a meter further back,

I think we'd be having a a very grim conversation.

>> Bow, that's the word I was looking for.

>> Grinder Louis Sinclair is in hospital

and recovering well from surgery after receiving compound fractures to both legs in the

incident.

>> God, can you imagine the danger of that?

I mean only with extensive hardware, we're talking pins, rods.

You got to stabilize both legs in a scenario like that.

Lifeguards have to make extremely scary rescues.

We put together a compilation of Bondi Beach rescues

and as always stay happy

and healthy.