Indian American Sues Captain of Boat, Company That Killed His Wife During a Parasailing Trip in Florida

An Indian American man is suing the captain of the boat and the company on which his wife died and his son and nephew were injured while parasailing in the Florida Keys last year, The Washington Post has reported. Srinivasrao Alaparthi has filed a lawsuit in the in Monroe County Circuit Courts in Florida against the parasailing boat’s captain Daniel Couch, his first mate and Captain Pip’s Marina and Hideaway, “alleging negligence and wrongful death,” The Post said. 

Supraja Alaparthi, 33, was with her 10-year-old son, Sriakshith Alaparthi, and her nephew, Vishant Sadda, 9, when their line became detached due to a sudden storm. A video released by WPLG Local 10 news shows the three being dragged along the water before they were slammed into the Seven Mile Bridge. The decision to cut the tow line was made by Couch, the New York Post reported, adding that the 49-year-old “hoped that he would be able to rescue the visitors from Illinois once the parasail descended.” But that wasn’t the case. Originally from Andhra Pradesh, Supraja Alaparthi died from the impact while Sadda suffered serious injuries and Shriakshith Alaparthi sustained minor wounds. 

In his lawsuit, Srinivasrao Alaparthi alleges “the boat’s crew should have done any number of things that would have prevented his family’s vacation in paradise from turning into a tragedy,” The Post said. “Instead, they failed to check the weather forecast, which would have shown an incoming storm, resorted to cutting the towline before trying to regain control of the rogue parachute and didn’t radio the U.S. Coast Guard for help as the independent chute dragged Alaparthi’s wife to her death.” Speaking to the media on June 8 he said that “if the people we trusted from the parasailing company and Captain Pip’s Marina had done their jobs, my wife would still be with us today. We trusted these companies, but they let us down in the worst possible way.” 

His lawyer Ricky Patel told The Post on Memorial Day weekend last year, the family took the trip to the Florida Keys from Chicago to celebrate their son’s 10th birthday. “When they arrived at the marina to book the trip, the Alaparthis raised concerns about the weather but were assured it was fine,” he told The Post. Alaparthi’s extended family reported to Lighthouse Parasail; Couch and his first mate loaded 12 passengers, including Alaparthi and his extended family, aboard their boat, the Airborne, The post report said, citing an affidavit by an investigator from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. 

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Supraja Alaparthi was part of the second group that sat in the parasail with her son and her nephew on either side. When they were strapped in, the crew let out the winch, allowing the parasail to lift them behind the boat. Soon, dark clouds formed, the wind howled and the winch struggled. “Couch lost control of the parasail with some 150 feet off line still extended and immediately cut the tow line with a pocket knife,” the affidavit said. The trio fell from “an unknown height” as a result, the affidavit states. “Untethered from the boat and propelled by the wind, the parasail itself stayed aloft and soared south, dragging its three occupants in and out of the water for two miles,” according to the affidavit. Then, it hit the Old Seven Mile Bridge, a decommissioned span that serves as a pedestrian walkway and fishing pier, it states.

The three were rescued by a nearby boater who saw them hit the water and rushed to rescue them, pulling the victims into his boat and taking them to wait for paramedics. John Callion, a fishing guide, told the Miami Herald that the Memorial Day storm developed suddenly. He raced around Pigeon Key to reach them, he told the paper. He told WPLG-TV that although “it was pretty much flat calm, you could see the storm coming. All of a sudden, the temperature dropped by 10 degrees and the wind started blowing like crazy.