Video: One dead, 9 injured in Lake Tapps boat collision

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BONNEY LAKE, Wash. – One person is dead, 9 others injured in a horrendous nighttime collision between two boats on Lake Tapps.

According to East Pierce Fire and Rescue, an emergency call came in at 10:37 p.m. Monday after the boats collided between Interlake Island and Inlet Island.

Authorities say there were five people on one boat and seven on the other. The suspect boat is said to have skimmed over the top of the other boat, injuring almost everyone on the struck boat and throwing its' driver into the water.

Divers, using underwater cameras, located the body of the boat driver at around 2 a.m.

In all, nine people were hurt, including one who was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle in critical condition. The other victims were taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Madigan Army Medical Center and to Tacoma General Hospital. Two of the other people involved have serious injuries and six appear to have minor injuries.

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Divers recover the body of a boat driver thrown overboard in a collision of two boats on Lake Tapps in Pierce County, Wash.

According to the authorities, the suspect boat had apparently left a restaurant or bar in the area and was heading home.  There is a no wake rule at night on Lake Tapps, which means boaters are not allowed to go more than five miles per hour. Witnesses say the suspect boat was seen traveling about 25 mph when it hit the other boat.

The driver  of the suspect boat has been arrested for investigation of boating under the influence. Authorities say he refused to take a breathalyzer test.