Police are appealing for witnesses after the death of a 15-year-old girl in a speedboat accident near Southampton.
Eleven other people were injured when the rigid inflatable boat (RIB) hit a buoy in difficult conditions on the Solent on Saturday.
The girl who died was named in reports as Emily Lewis, from Park Gate near Southampton. Her father, Simon, who was also on the vessel with his wife, Nikki, and Emily’s 19-year-old sister, Amy, paid tribute on Sunday to his “beautiful daughter”.
He wrote on Facebook: “Nikki and I need to share some very tragic news today. Our beautiful daughter Emily passed away yesterday.
“We were all involved in a boating accident in the Solent and Em suffered serious trauma and died not long after we got to hospital.
“Nikki and Amy suffered broken arms and are doing as well as expected. I have pain but no breaks but the emotional pain far outweighs the physical.
“We are all in shock that our beautiful daughter and sister is no longer with us and words just don’t seem to be available to express our deep sense of loss.”
Det Supt Neil Corrigan of Hampshire constabulary said: “This was a tragic incident and our thoughts remain with the young girl’s family at this difficult time. We are now building a picture of what happened on the water that day and the circumstances leading up to this collision. It is important that we gather as much visual evidence as we can, as well as accounts from any witnesses.”
The condition of the other passengers is unknown. Police said all required medical treatment and some were seriously injured. A spokesman for the South Central ambulance service said none of the survivors’ injuries were life-threatening.
Police, who are working with the Maritime & Coastguard Agency and the Marine Accident Investigation Branch, declined to name the owners of the RIB but confirmed it had been on a commercial trip run by a local company.
Detectives are appealing for witnesses and video footage from people who may have been out on the water or seen the incident from a ferry heading to the Isle of Wight at the time.
The crash happened shortly after 10am on Saturday between Netley Abbey and Hythe Pier. Corrigan appealed for information from anyone who was on a ferry that left Southampton at 10am heading to East Cowes on the Isle of Wight, and anyone else who might have been on the water at the time.
A local mariner told PA Media that navigation markers in the Solent were usually very large and could be the size of a small car. He said conditions had been very difficult on Saturday, with strong spring tides coupled with winds of 8 on the Beaufort scale – up to 46mph.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 quoting Operation Orange, or to submit information and visually recorded evidence via the major incident public portal.
