An ill wind blows no good

Posted at 7:47 AM on August 22, 2008 by Bob Collins (1 Comments)
Filed under: Surveys and trivia

I admit to occasionally wishing ill will on weather people who stand outside in the middle of a hurricane (or tropical storm), dressed in their sponsor-logo raingear, desperately trying to stand still, and ready to take one for the team, all in the interest of telling us to take the hurricane seriously and stay indoors.

But I wouldn't wish this on anybody, no matter how ill advised the activity that led to it. Kevin Kearney was badly injured while kite surfing during Tropical Storm Fay in Ft. Lauderdale.

The obvious question: What was he thinking? A less obvious one: Why didn't he let go?

His mother told a TV talk show this morning that the man saw the video for the first time last night. "He thought they filmed the wrong guy," she said. Alicia Paradise-Garza says he doesn't remember the incident. "He knew there was some kind of danger, but he didn't calculate the tornado or windspout that picked him up."

Last night, his friends set up a Web site on the man's behalf, to help raise money for his medical bills.

A similar accident in Spain last year won a Darwin Award nomination.

Comments (1)

I think he was harnessed to the kite, so he couldn't let go if he wanted.

Posted by Matt | August 22, 2008 10:23 AM

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