The Daily Inter Lake
U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., suffered a broken ankle and four other people were injured in a severe boating accident Thursday night.
They were hurt when a 22-foot motorboat ran into rocks after 10 p.m. in Wayfarers State Park on the shore of Flathead Lake, according to Jim Satterfield, regional supervisor for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
The boat appeared to have been driven at high speed directly into the rocks, judging from how far out of the water the wreckage was Friday.
Campers heard the crash, went to the scene and called 911, Satterfield said. The first 911 call came in at 10:24 p.m., with the Bigfork Fire Department responding to the scene.
Also hospitalized were state Sen. Greg Barkus, R-Kalispell; his wife, Kathleen; and two Rehberg staffers, Dustin Frost and Kristin Smith.
Three of the injured were transported by ALERT helicopter and two by ground ambulance to Kalispell Regional Medical Center. All were listed in stable condition Friday morning.
The hospital declined to give any other information about the other crash victims.
Rehberg, a passenger on the boat, was transported by ground ambulance and underwent surgery Friday afternoon for a broken ankle, according to Eric Iverson, a longtime friend and former chief of staff for the congressman.
"He's got some cuts and bruises. He's got a broken ankle. He took quite a bump on his head," Iverson said in a teleconference with media on Friday afternoon.
Iverson said he could not answer questions about the medical condition of others who were on the boat, and he said that during a brief visit with Rehberg in the morning, there was no discussion about how the crash happened or who was driving the boat.
"Denny was awake and alert and concerned about how well everybody else is doing," Iverson said.
He said Rehberg's wife, Jan, was en route with Rehberg's father to Kalispell from Billings on Friday afternoon, and that family members of the others involved were at the hospital.
Fish, Wildlife and Parks wardens at the scene on Friday said the boat had not been moved since the crash, about 100 yards south of the Wayfarers pier, which is well-lit at night. The hull was intact, but the engine outdrive was torn away from the stern and the passenger-side windshield was collapsed forward.
The wardens said a crane was being called in to lift the wreckage off the rocks.
The state park was closed to all public use Friday to allow for the accident investigation, Satterfield said. It was likely to be closed through today.
In addition to the Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the Montana Highway Patrol and Flathead County Sheriff's Office are involved in the investigation.
Fish, Wildlife and Parks spokesman Tom Palmer said the state's top boat-crash experts were on the scene.
"Typically what they will look into is the condition of the boat and try to determine the following: the speed at impact, who was driving, whether or not they had the proper number of life jackets on board - which would have been five - determine if they were wearing any, and determine who was driving," Palmer said. "Whether or not alcohol or drugs is involved is a routine part of such investigations."
The agency had not yet determined to whom the boat was registered and said investigators were still trying Friday afternoon to determine who was driving. An investigation report was not expected before next week, officials said.
Town-hall meetings Rehberg had scheduled in Cut Bank and Shelby on Friday have been canceled.
Rehberg had been in Polson on Thursday visiting St. Joseph Medical Center and Tribal Health Services. He reportedly was staying at Marina Cay in Bigfork.
The Associated Press contributed to this story. For more on this story, see Saturday's Daily Inter Lake.
rls
Who cares if the drunken bum Teddy Kennedy the murderer is buried yet or not he got away with killing a woman after a drunken party just because of his money. We should be celebrating the fact that the biggest looser of the white house is gone. "I know I am". Oh yeah this comment section is about conservatives that crashed in a boat and the facts are not out yet as to what caused it.
JMO
Missoulian - State Senate Majority Whip Greg Barkus, R-Kalispell, was behind the wheel when the accident occurred between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., officials said. A boat matching the description of the one in the accident is registered to Barkus' wife, Kathy, according to the state Justice Department. and.......I've heard that Barkus Flatlined during transport. And one of the aides is critical.
JMO
The more I think about all this, the more I think Barkus probably is in very serious/critical condition. Otherwise they would be releasing info about him. And the aides & his wife. Everything is hush hush. Wouldn't be that way if it was an everyday citizen.
MT_native
Hmmm....Wonder if alcohol was a factor here???
DouglasG
Didn't Barkus have a DUI a year or so ago? Hmm, indeed.
faithful reader
Another hmmm here. Maybe a deer ran in front of their boat?
DavidS
Of course Rehberg and the others were drunk. To get their boat clear up there, they must have been drunk as skunks. And to think people like this represent Montana in Washington. Shamefully typical Republican behavior.
59602
I wonder what kind of care he'd receive under Obama's healthcare bill, HR3200.
Sam Adams
dsrobbins: Bad behavior is non-partisan. I think a certain Democrat named Ted Kennedy wrote the book on how to be stupid while drunk. BTW... let's wait until we know the facts before we claim to 'know' what happened.
faithful reader
dsrobins, if I were you, I'd throw myself on the mercy of this site's administrators and ask that my comment be removed. You are treading into libelous waters, and while it's true that public officials are exposed as far as defamation goes, the courts are leaning towards protecting people from slanderous comments lately. You don't KNOW that anyone was drunk. The rest of us were more circumspect. Honestly, you might want to get your comment removed.
rockymtnboy
As any person that has maneuvered a boat around/near Wayfarers (in the dark no less) can attest to, there are lights among the road down that can often conceal the true land marks in that area. It could be they were coming in fast to try and make their very busy schedules and that alcohol wasn't a factor. Have you read too much about other "celebs" that when an accident happens that alcohol or drugs MUST be an issue?
rdj
Do we really have to get into the booze comments? I never voted for the man. I always voted against him. Right now I am praying for him. Sometimes I think we have lost our humanity.
H F Davidson
I've boated in and out of that bay dozens of time after dark in my 22' motorboat and never had a problem telling rocks from water even when I had been drinking.
faithful reader
dky, YOU seem to be the one making it political, along with a couple of people referring to Chappaquidick. Everyone else just questioned alcohol consumption, without any party affiliation. I'm sure the families have their own information, without relying upon a newspaper web site for information on their loved ones. Try to relax a little, huh?
DouglasG
And once again, The Beacon has the update posted first.
MrMark
I happen to like Denny, but just wait for the spin that we get on this one. It should be interesting. No doubt they'll find some kind of malfunction with the boat.
cuzican
All stupid comments and political views aside, I just about fell out of my chair laughing while I read this article. I think they watched the boat chase scene from Smoky & the Bandit a few too many times.
justathought
Do you wonder if the throttle stuck? That's awful high up, with relatively little damage: making me think the person driving was not impaired. Looks to have been driven quite well either way, for it not to have flipped or even be on its side. High speed, relatively straight looking... i wonder.
bimmermt
Sam Adams, you are an ass! The man isn't even buried and you shoot your mouth. F'ing idiot!!
bimmermt
DCheney: Very talented indeed, I had trouble remembering the words and tune, but did well enough to enjoy your creativity. Thanks. And, this potentially tragic event is not political. We have all been in situations such as this, and if "you" weren't, you missed out. We are all just thankful we made it, so far.
rls
Let see, Since it is a conservitive they must have been drunk. So I must assume if it was the liberal scum bag Bacaus or Tester it would have been drugs with an illegal alien lighting the doobie as they crashed into the rocks.