Two St. Thomas men are dead following a boating accident just off Water Bay on New Year’s morning.
Police investigators and Planning and Natural Resources officers were summoned to the area around 7 a.m. when two of four men on board a recreational speed boat were reported dead. The two bodies were recovered from the water a stone’s throw away from the moorings at Water Bay.
Well-placed sources in the marine industry confirmed for St. Thomas Source that a joint investigation between the V.I. Police Department and DPNR has been launched to determine how the deceased men ended up in the water and how they died.
Their identities were not immediately available Saturday evening.
Another source said there was absolutely no collision, and added, "It's hard to explain how they got in the water."
The four men were reportedly returning from the British Virgin Islands when the accident occurred.
The joint investigation reportedly is looking at whether negligent boat handling and foul play contributed to the deaths of the two men. Neither investigating agency, DPNR or VIPD, has commented on the accident or the nature of the investigation now under way.
