Two dead after boat collision on Tickfaw River early Sunday

LIVINGSTON PARISH, Louisiana (KLFY) — Two people died early Sunday when a pontoon boat and a Sea Fox boat collided on the Tickfaw River near Kings Point. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said.

The collision killed a 27-year-old woman, a passenger on the Sea Fox boat, and a 36-year-old man who was piloting the pontoon boat, Wildlife and Fisheries said. Authorities will not release the names of the deceased boaters until all next of kin have been notified.

Wildlife and Fisheries was notified of the incident at approximately 12:17 a.m. Sunday. Authorities said they arrived on scene to find the 25-foot pontoon boat was heavily damaged and the 25-foot Sea Fox boat capsized.

The 27-year-old Sea Fox passenger was trapped under the capsized vessel, authorities said, but an agent and another person were able to jump into the water and recover her body. The woman was taken to North Oaks Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Meanwhile, a search was underway for the 36-year-old man who was driving the pontoon boat. His body was recovered at around 12:45 a.m., Wildlife and Fisheries said. Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office and that Springfield Fire Department helped with the search.

Three people on the Sea Fox and three people on the pontoon boat were taken to an area hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

The Wildlife and Fisheries Agency said it would lead the investigation into the fatal boating accident.

The cause of the accident was still unknown as of Sunday afternoon, authorities said.

According to the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, there were six people on the Sea Fox and seven people on the pontoon boat at the time of the accident. No one was wearing a life jacket, authorities said.

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