2 Men Seriously Hurt, 3rd Charged With Drunken Boating At Barnegat Bay Float Party: NJSP

BARNEGAT BAY, NJ — Two men were seriously injured by boat propellers during the popular Floats and Boats gathering Saturday on Barnegat Bay, New Jersey State Police confirmed Tuesday.

A third man was charged with boating under the influence in connection with one of the injuries, New Jersey State Police Sgt. First Class Philip Curry said.

The two men were injured during separate incidents, Curry said. The first incident happened about 1:40 p.m. Saturday, when a man was hit on the leg by propeller, Curry said. That man was flown to Atlantic City Medical Center for treatment, he said.

In the second incident, about 3:40 p.m., a 34-year-old man was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune after he was hit in the abdomen by a propeller, Curry said.

The operator of the vessel involved in that incident, Sol Salazar, 38, of Newark, was charged with boating under the influence, he said.

Curry did not release the identities of either of the injured men.

The Floats and Boats event, where people hang out in the area of Tices Shoal, is a widely popular event that draws a large crowd for two days each summer. Boats will tie up to each other, and people bring large floats of all kinds, from giant swans to unicorns to watermelon slices and much more.

"It's no secret that unique floats are a 'thing' now," the event organizers wrote on the Floats and Boats website. "First there were swans, then there were pizza slices, now there's a float for EVERYTHING!"

Tices Shoal is a shallower area in the bay east of the Forked River section of Lacey Township, where people are able to stand easily in water. It's a popular hangout even outside of Floats and Boats, often referred to as "Floatchella."

The event drew about 2,000 boats, News 12 New Jersey reported. A photo shared on Instagram showed the extent of the gathering.