Screenshot: YouTube
I have said many times that fishing is one of the most boring things a person can do. But even I would be OK sitting in the same place for hours if the other option would be getting smashed by a boat, because the latter is pretty much what happened to fisherman Bryan Maess and his pals.
Maess is suing a 75-year-old man named Marlin Lee Larsen because Larsen almost killed Maess and other fishermen when his boat crashed into theirs on the Columbia river. The crash happened in August, but video of the crash is going viral as it is pretty damn insane. Check out video of the crash below which shows Maess and others trying to notifity Larsen of impending doom, before jumping off the boat in a panic.
Maess is suing Larsen for $372,500, alleging Larsen was distracted by his cellphone just before the crash.
Deputies in Clatsop County and the US Coast Guard responded to the crash in the Columbia River near Tansy Point and found significant damage to the fishing boat. Maess and his two passengers, Christopher McMahon and Roni Durham, managed to jump from the fishing boat just before the crash and were later treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Clatsop County Sheriff’s Office.
Drugs and alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the crash, deputies said. Larsen was cited for reckless operation, three counts of reckless endangerment and three counts of fourth-degree assault.
Larsen told investigators he couldn’t see where he was driving since he was sitting down. Larsen, who uses a motorized scooter on land, admitted that he probably should’ve been standing at the time, according to a sheriff’s report obtained by the Oregonian. Larsen’s son-in-law, who was also on the boat at the time, told investigators that he occasionally saw Larsen using his cellphone while driving the boat. State law bans cellphone use while driving, but there are no specific laws governing cellphone use while boating.
Larsen has denied using his cellphone, and has pleaded not guilty. McMahon and Durham have not sued Larsen yet, but they’ve hired attorneys and will be doing so shortly.
