(Spirit Lake)– A grand jury will be convened to determine whether charges should be filed in a deadly boating accident earlier this summer on West Lake Okoboji.
The August crash near Manhattan Beach claimed the life of six-year-old Kathryn Mills of Johnston. She was a passenger in one of the two boats that collided. 10 other people, five of them children, were injured.
Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources have concluded their investigation into the crash. They say Dickinson County attorney Rosalise Olson will turn the case over to a grand jury.
The crash happened around 10:30 a.m. Monday, August 2nd.
Six-year-old Kathryn Mills, a passenger in the boat driven by her grandfather, 64-year-old Rodney Burgeson of Spriit Lake, was killed. Investigators say Burgeson’s blood alcohol content tested below the point-one-oh limit for operating a motor boat.
The D-N-R report says Burgeson’s boat was idling when it was struck on the port side by a 20-foot Rinker Captiva operated by 60-year-old Merlyn DeBoer of Spirit Lake. The report says the boat operated by DeBoer was travelling at about 35 to 40 miles-per-hour when the collision took place. The impact knocked a passenger in Burgeson’s boat, nine-year-old Andrew Mills, into the water. His mother, 42-year-old Robyn Mills, jumped in to rescue him.
All four children in the Burgeson boat…11-year-old Brooke Burgeson of Apple Valley, Minnesota, Andrew, Kathryn and their sister…Elizabeth…were wearing life jackets. The three adults in the boat were not.
Four passengers were in the boat operated by DeBoer: 52-year-old Kay McCormick, 12-year-old Abby McCormick and 12-year-old Taylor Maurer…all of Sioux City. Maurer was thrown into the water and was rescued by a fisherman. Authorities say none were wearing a life jacket.
Authorities say neither boat sank. Burgeson’s boat was heavily damaged and was towed to shore by the fisherman. Little damage was reported to DeBoer’s boat.
Details into the mishap weren’t released until Friday.
