The Virgin Islands Daily News reports today that the U.S. Coast Guard continues to investigate the fatal parasailing accident in St. Thomas which killed a Celebrity Cruises passenger and seriously injured her daughter on November 15, 2011.
We discussed this incident in our article Celebrity Cruises Passenger Killed in Parasailng Accident in St. Thomas.
The incidents resulted in the death of Bernice Kraftcheck, age 60 who the newspaper identifies lived in Round Lake, Illinois. Her daughter, Danielle Haese, age 34, is identified as living in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania.
The Virgin Islands Daily News states that it is “unclear what caused the tandem riders to fall from the parachute and harnessed rig.” In its first article about the mishap, the newspaper cited speculation that winds gusts may have played a part in the accident.
A Coast Guard representative mentions that ten Coast Guard members from St. Thomas, Puerto Rico and the U.S. are conducting a maritime casualty investigation. The investigation checked the operators from the excursion company,Caribbean Watersports and Tours, for drug and alcohol shortly after the accident.
Coast Guard investigations like this may take many months to complete.