Police

Update: Connecticut man arrested following boating accident

A Sea Tow boat tows the boat Saturday morning following the accident Friday night. (Credit: Sonja Reinholt Derr)
A Sea Tow boat tows the boat Saturday morning following the accident Friday night. (Credit: Sonja Reinholt Derr)

UPDATE (Saturday): The captain of a 24-foot power boat that collided into the Greenport breakwater Friday night was arrested for boating while intoxicated, Southold Town police said.

Robert Skinner, 46, of Shelton, Conn. struck the jetty just after 9:30 p.m. bringing the boat to a sudden stop as it began to take on water, police said. Mr. Skinner and a passenger boarded a second boat that was following them and were transported to Eastern Long Island Hospital. Police determined Mr. Skinner was intoxicated at the time of the accident and arrested him.

He was transported to police headquarters and held for a morning arraignment.

The boat was removed early Saturday morning.

Original Story: A boat with two people aboard crashed Friday night into the Greenport breakwater — a rock jetty that juts into the bay toward Shelter Island, Southold Town police said. 

The 47-year-old man and 46-year-old woman, both from Shelton, Conn., were transported to Eastern Long Island Hospital, police said. The extent of their injuries was not immediately clear.

The accident occurred around 9:30 p.m., police said. Another boater nearby helped assist the victims to the hospital, police said.

The Greenport, Southold and East Marion Fire Departments responded to the scene along with the Southold Bay Constables, Shelter Island police, the U.S. Coast Guard and SeaTow.

The investigation into the incident is underway, police said. No further information was immediately available.

The breakwater has been the site of boating accidents in the past. In 2011, a Greenport man was arrested on drunken boating charges after mounting his boat onto the rocks in an early-morning crash.

The boat was pulled back to a dock Saturday morning. (Credit: Sonja Reinholt Derr)
The boat was pulled back to a dock Saturday morning. (Credit: Sonja Reinholt Derr)
Police and fire departments respond to the scene in Greenport Friday night. (Credit: Andrew Derr)
Police and fire departments respond to the scene in Greenport Friday night. (Credit: Andrew Derr)