Police divers spent most of Monday morning in Lake Gibson searching for the severed leg of the 14-year-old girl involved in a watercraft accident this weekend.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers are in charge of the investigation. They say it appears the 14-year-old was riding one personal watercraft parallel to another driven by a 15-year-old girl. The 14-year-old turned left in front of the other vessel, causing the impact that severed her left leg below the knee.
Gary Morse, a spokesman for the Fish & Wildlife Commission, said there was nothing the 15-year-old girl could do to avoid the crash Sunday.
"They don't have brakes, and when you take the power off you lose steerage on them."
Morse did say the girls were both wearing life jackets, but neither had taken a state-required boating safety course.
"It goes over the rules of the road, and that's particularly important here because one of those rules was violated, and a girl lost her leg as a result," he said.
Morse said detectives are conducting a criminal investigation. Once that investigation is complete, Fish & Wildlife officers will forward their findings to the State Attorney's Office. The state attorney will determine whether any charges will be filed. Investigators did not release the girls' names.
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