Indianapolis teen hurt in Cataract Lake boating accident
CLOVERDALE -- An Indianapolis teenager was seriously injured Tuesday afternoon after being struck by the propeller of a ski boat being operated by a 12-year-old on Cataract Lake, authorities said.
The incident reportedly occurred about 4:30 p.m. as two 15-year-old boys were riding on an inner tube being pulled by the boat, Indiana Conservation Officers said.
When the boat suddenly inexplicably swerved toward them, the two teenagers jumped from the inner tube into the water to avoid being struck.
However, one of the boys, identified as Deonte Starke, was struck and injured.
Conservation officers at Cataract Lake said Starke was struck by the motor's propeller, sustaining several serious cuts to his abdomen.
He was flown by medical helicopter to an Indianapolis hospital in serious condition.
Starke and the other boys reportedly have been attending a Christian summer camp for disadvantaged inner-city youth known as Five Stones Camp.
In investigating the incident, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources reported that 12-year-old boy was operating the boat at the time of the incident.
Conservation Officer Max Winchell said authorities are still trying to learn why the 12-year-old was operating the boat since there was an adult in the boat as well. The occupants of the boat were not disclosed by officials.
Indiana law makes it illegal for anyone younger than 16 to operate a motor boat without a valid driver's license. No citations have been issued in the incident.