Firedab
12-06-2004, 07:53 AM
Guys, a bad day here...
One of our own just passed away, young and leaving 2 kids behind. Remember that when your doing something you know is just not safe... like he did... :alone:
Passage from Sun-Sentinel.com
Airboat flips over during high-speed race, killing Fort Lauderdale firefighter
By Alva James-Johnson
Staff Writer
Posted December 6 2004
A Fort Lauderdale firefighter whose friends called him "Everglades J" because of his love for the national park was killed in an airboat accident there Sunday.
Jason Goode, 30, of Davie was steering the vessel when a pocket of air slipped underneath the hull, lifted the boat about 15 feet, flipped it over and tossed the firefighter to his death, said Jorge Pino, a spokesman for the Florida Fishing and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The accident occurred a little before 3:55 p.m. about 8 to 10 miles north of U.S. 41, about 40 miles from downtown Miami.
According to Pino, witnesses said Goode was racing another airboat and traveling at between 70 and 90 mph when the accident occurred. There is no speed limit for boats in the Everglades, Pino said.
Pino said the firefighter suffered massive injuries and was flown to Jackson Memorial Hospital.
He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Fishing and wildlife investigators could not locate the operator of the second airboat Sunday, and the accident was under investigation, Pino said.
"We'd like to talk to the person so he can give us his version," he said. "It's not necessarily against the law to go 100 miles an hour if you want to go 100 miles an hour in the Everglades," he said. "What we're trying to determine is whether any navigational rules were violated, or whether there was any carelessness or recklessness in the way that this gentleman operated his vessel.
"Barring him coming forward and admitting it was him, or witnesses positively identifying the person," it would be difficult to find the individual, he said. "It was a beautiful day; there were many other airboaters out there at the time."
Assistant Chief Stephen McInerny, a spokesman for the Fort Lauderdale Fire Department, said Goode was part of the Fire Department's hazardous materials team, which is stationed at Engine Company 88 in the northwestern end of Broward County.
He said Goode, who had been with the Fire Department about five years, would have normally been on duty Sunday, but he was on vacation.
"He was a tough kid and a really good firefighter," he said. "It's just a terrible, tragic loss, all the more this time of year."
McInerny said fire chiefs were personally delivering the news to firefighters on duty Sunday evening and allowing those who worked closely with Goode to go home. He said many were shaken and upset.
Mike Reimer, a close friend who worked with Goode at Engine Company 88, was at the hospital with Goode's parents and other family members.
Reimer said Goode left behind two children and a fiancée but wouldn't give their names.
The firefighter had just celebrated his 30th birthday in October and knew how to enjoy life, Reimer said.
According to state records, Goode was president and director of a corporation called Extreme Airboat Adventures Inc., listed at an address where he previously lived in Davie.
"He was lots of fun, light-hearted and willing to help anybody out," Reimer said. "We used to call him `Everglades J' because he used to be out there with his kids teaching them about conserving the Everglades, hunting and fishing."
Alva James-Johnson can be reached at ajjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4523.
One of our own just passed away, young and leaving 2 kids behind. Remember that when your doing something you know is just not safe... like he did... :alone:
Passage from Sun-Sentinel.com
Airboat flips over during high-speed race, killing Fort Lauderdale firefighter
By Alva James-Johnson
Staff Writer
Posted December 6 2004
A Fort Lauderdale firefighter whose friends called him "Everglades J" because of his love for the national park was killed in an airboat accident there Sunday.
Jason Goode, 30, of Davie was steering the vessel when a pocket of air slipped underneath the hull, lifted the boat about 15 feet, flipped it over and tossed the firefighter to his death, said Jorge Pino, a spokesman for the Florida Fishing and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The accident occurred a little before 3:55 p.m. about 8 to 10 miles north of U.S. 41, about 40 miles from downtown Miami.
According to Pino, witnesses said Goode was racing another airboat and traveling at between 70 and 90 mph when the accident occurred. There is no speed limit for boats in the Everglades, Pino said.
Pino said the firefighter suffered massive injuries and was flown to Jackson Memorial Hospital.
He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Fishing and wildlife investigators could not locate the operator of the second airboat Sunday, and the accident was under investigation, Pino said.
"We'd like to talk to the person so he can give us his version," he said. "It's not necessarily against the law to go 100 miles an hour if you want to go 100 miles an hour in the Everglades," he said. "What we're trying to determine is whether any navigational rules were violated, or whether there was any carelessness or recklessness in the way that this gentleman operated his vessel.
"Barring him coming forward and admitting it was him, or witnesses positively identifying the person," it would be difficult to find the individual, he said. "It was a beautiful day; there were many other airboaters out there at the time."
Assistant Chief Stephen McInerny, a spokesman for the Fort Lauderdale Fire Department, said Goode was part of the Fire Department's hazardous materials team, which is stationed at Engine Company 88 in the northwestern end of Broward County.
He said Goode, who had been with the Fire Department about five years, would have normally been on duty Sunday, but he was on vacation.
"He was a tough kid and a really good firefighter," he said. "It's just a terrible, tragic loss, all the more this time of year."
McInerny said fire chiefs were personally delivering the news to firefighters on duty Sunday evening and allowing those who worked closely with Goode to go home. He said many were shaken and upset.
Mike Reimer, a close friend who worked with Goode at Engine Company 88, was at the hospital with Goode's parents and other family members.
Reimer said Goode left behind two children and a fiancée but wouldn't give their names.
The firefighter had just celebrated his 30th birthday in October and knew how to enjoy life, Reimer said.
According to state records, Goode was president and director of a corporation called Extreme Airboat Adventures Inc., listed at an address where he previously lived in Davie.
"He was lots of fun, light-hearted and willing to help anybody out," Reimer said. "We used to call him `Everglades J' because he used to be out there with his kids teaching them about conserving the Everglades, hunting and fishing."
Alva James-Johnson can be reached at ajjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4523.