Family: Teens' missing boat found overturned off Jacksonville

wpbf ^ | 7-24-15 | n/a

[Paladin2]

The 14 yr olds probably never watched Sea Hunt either.

[Topcatfl]

I live about 40 miles south of Jupiter, have two boats, and actually was out in the ocean today. On Friday we had a couple of squalls come though with winds to 45 miles per hour. The teens were in a 19 foot Seacraft according to the Coast Guard pan pan broadcasts today. In the 80s that boat brand had a reputation for sinking and were sometimes called “sinkcraft” for their propensity to go under. The problem wih them is that the transom was cut very low to the water. The manufacturer tried to fix it by putting lead weight foward and limiting weight on the stern. Of course Seacraft has gone through many owners since then, but based on the pictures I saw of their boat they look like it was one of the older ones with a newer engine (heavier now thanks to the EPA). As far as the kids on the water they are everywhere here. Heck I got my first boat as an 8th grader in Long Island. They tell you to stay with the boat if they go down, but the foam in them makes them turtle and there isn't much to hold onto especially in any sort of seas. The other factor down here is the current in the gulfsstream, I headed 8 mph south today trolling, and still ended up north of where I went out.

[TXnMA]

According to ABC News:

The boat a pair of missing Florida teenagers went missing in two days ago was found off the coast of the Ponce de Leon Inlet in central Florida, the Coast Guard said today.

The recovered boat was capsized and damaged, and neither boy was in or around the boat, the Coast Guard said.

According to Google Earth, that is about 150 miles north of Jupiter...

[TXnMA]

"Damaged..." -- that could mean anything from "hit something" to "lost control and flipped at speed" to "burned" or "shot up by drug thugs"...

[representativerepublic]

I’ve done that trip. But in a 37’ sport fisherman, not a 19’ center console.

[two23]

Neighbor Joe Namath has offered reward for their safe return. Do they suspect kidnapping?

[sheana]

We have a sailboat that is a true blue water cruiser. We have been up down and all around SoCal from San Diego to Ventura. We have a true respect for the sea. Watch and listen to the weather reports religiously before undertaking any cruise. We also have a handheld nav and a handheld radio in case the hard wired ones quit working (which they have lol).
Those kids should have never attempted that trip in a 19 ft boat with apparently no one really knowing where they were going and no emergency equipment.

[two23]

Yes, it may be that they didn’t really tell their parents exactly what their plans were?
There are some comments below one of the online reports that indicate to that extent.
The sea is unforgiving in a lapse in judgment or preparation.
When I was younger, I read every book I could find about shipwrecks and real life lost at sea stories.
I just play in the road now.

There still is a possibility of them having been picked up (maybe by unsavory characters) with or without a weather incidence.
Regardless, their parents are having a real bad weekend.

[MIchaelTArchangel]

I nominate each of them for a Darwin Award.

[sheana]

They’re kids. They’re invincible.....they think. But the sea is unforgiving.

[Georgia Girl 2]

I’ve done that trip in a 24 ft sport fisherman and two other boats as a caravan. Anything else is nuts.

Aren’t you the one that told me in an earlier post that people in S Fla routinely let their teenage kids do this kind of stuff? I don’t think so.

I’ll go as far to say that nobody in their right mind lets their kids go out on a boat un chaperoned in the ocean.

[liberalh8ter]

Maybe I’m an overprotective Mom, but as good as my son is (and has been) with a boat (he has his Capt’s now as an adult), I would have beat him with my shoe if I thought he was even considering going out the Jupiter inlet at 14. My heart is breaking over this.

[Capt_Hank]

I can’t blame you. I really don’t think they were headed to the Bahamas. Reason, they would have to clear Customs at a cost ($150), have a place to stay for the night, top off their fuel tanks for the return trip and money to eat.

Everyone knows that in south Florida, you have to be off of the waters around 4:00PM, because of thunderstorms in the summer.

The local station, stated that a squall line went thru the area, around the time they were out to sea.

[two23]

All reasonable possibilities and faults aside, I can only imagine what their parents are going through. Nightmare.

[representativerepublic]

It wasn’t me. I live on the west coast of Florida. My buddy used to keep his boat in Palm Beach County. We would go out of Lake Worth Inlet.

But you are correct. Any parent who lets their 14 year old child attempt this trip is nuts.