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Family Departs As Officials Investigate Boat Accident

POSTED: 3:55 pm HST December 3, 2006
UPDATED: 4:01 pm HST December 3, 2006

The family of the teenager killed in a freak sailing accident in waters off Waikiki has returned home to Riverside, Calif.

But before they left, they held a private memorial service for 13-year-old Jordan Loser.

Loser was killed Saturday when the mast of a touring catamaran snapped, pinning him to the deck. Though the crew and passengers rushed to remove the mast, it was simply too heavy.

Two other people were seriously injured in the accident.

The U.S. Coast Guard is investigating the incident and has received state documents used to certify the boat.

Christian Bode, a passenger aboard the Na Hoku 2, shared video clips of the disastrous boat trip. In the video his family remarked that the boat ride was the highlight of their trip.

“There was no need to feel afraid or danger; we were just having a good time. It was just out of the blue, it just bent to the left and it crinkled into about five bends. It was on of the first bends that fell on the boy,” said Bode.

Bode and his two children were sitting next to Loser.

Bode said he didn't hear anything but the rustling of ropes and sails.

He said when he realized what happened, it was chaotic as passengers and crew rushed to try and help.

The owner of the boat, John Savio, said he is struggling to understand what happened. He said the boat was inspected and certified by the Coast Guard as recently as May.

Friends of Savio, who also helped design and build the boat, flowed through the Ala Wai to offer their help.

He told friends the Coast Guard might take a sample of the mast to determine if metal fatigue was the blame.

The boat did have a permit to operate in Waikiki, but the state did not get involved in the vessel inspection.

“When the Coast Guard doesn’t do it then we will go and inspect but typically when a vessel carries more than six passengers it will be a Coast Guard documented vessel and they will be involved in that process,” said Peter Young, the state land director.

Young refused to talk about any previous safety violations, adding that it was in the hands of the U.S. Coast Guard.

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