31-year-old East Naples man killed in watercraft accident
An East Naples man was killed Thursday night in a boating accident after he was “slung” into another vessel north of Keewaydin Island, according to authorities.
Emil Dan Prunean, 31, originally from Medias, Romania, suffered fatal injuries when his flotation tube, being towed by a Yamaha WaveRunner, collided with a Kawasaki Jet Ski, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report.
According the report, Liviu Vasile Nicolsescu was operating the vessel towing Prunean, when he collided with the other vessel, at 7:20 p.m. on Thursday night, the report said.
The second personal watercraft was carrying three occupants.
There were no other injuries or any sign of alcohol consumption reported.
Reverend Ovidiu Pacurar, of St. Polycarp of Smyrna Mission in Naples, a church that serves the local Romanian community, says Prunean came from Romania to the United States just over three years ago.
Prunian worked at the Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort and lived locally with his sister, Pacurar said. Prunean’s father passed away eight weeks ago in his hometown of Medias, a small industrial city in central Romania, Pacurar said.
“He was a good kid,” Pacurar said, adding that Prunean came to the United States looking for a better life with more opportunities.
Like a lot of young Romanian immigrants, Pacurar said that Prunean worked hard to achieve the “American Dream.”
“They come here and they struggle,” Pacurar said.
Originally Posted at: www.naplesnews.com
