Okaloosa County reported fewer boating crashes in 2013 than in 2012, although the number of fatalities stayed the same, according to a report released Friday.
Three Niceville residents were killed in a single early-December accident when their boat crashed into the Mid-Bay Bridge. The other fatal accident happened Oct. 12, when a Louisiana man died after being thrown from a personal watercraft and slipped out of a lifejacket.
The 2013 Boating Accident Statistical Report was compiled by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Across the state, 62 died in boating accidents, with drowning being the principle cause of death, the report said. Okaloosa County had 24 boating accidents in 2013, down from 31 in 2012.
Although Okaloosa County still made the Top 10 list of counties as ranked by number of boating accidents, its 2013 ranking of eighth place was an improvement over the previous year, when it was ranked No. 5.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa's boat accidents down in 2013