SYRACUSE – A mechanical failure sent a boat on Lake Wawasee crashing onto shore, and one person was injured. According to an Indiana Department of Natural Resources press release, conservation officers are investigating an unusual boat accident which landed Riley Wagner, 16, of New Paris, in the hospital with serious injuries. The accident occurred on Lake Wawasee Sunday at approximately 5:40 p.m. A 2005 Nautique, being operated by Marshall Dillon, 18, of Goshen, suffered a broken linkage handle as Dillon was preparing to dock the boat. Investigating Indiana Conservation Officer Jon Cook reported that as Dillon was preparing to dock his boat, which Wagner was a passenger in, the mechanical failure occurred causing the boat to accelerate out of control and hit the seawall near 11554 Venetian Drive, sending it airborne onto land. The boat came to rest on private property but upon impacting the sea wall, Wagner was ejected from the boat, approximately 50 feet, and she ended up in the roadway on Venetian Drive. Wagner was taken to a local hospital where she is being treated for her injuries. There was significant damage to both the watercraft and the property where the watercraft landed. Indiana conservation officers were assisted at the scene by Syracuse Police Dept., Syracuse Fire Dept. and Syracuse EMS personnel.
