Boating accidents in crowded Biscayne Bay near Miami have claimed the lives of two Floridians, including a Miami insurance agency customer representative and the CEO of a medical conference services firm.
Multiple news sources reported that Davide Veglia, 55, of North Miami, was killed in a hit-and-run incident when a speed boat collided with a dinghy that Veglia and his son were on last week. Veglia’s 14-year-old son was injured.
Video footage captured shots of the boat, and authorities are looking for the owner and driver of a 40-foot cabin cruiser, the Miami Herald reported. Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission authorities had located the boat by Tuesday but no arrests had been made.
Veglia was head of ABTS Convention Services, which he founded in 1995. The firm provided services to physicians traveling to medical conferences around the world.
The same day, Claudia Balmaseda Orellanes, 33, a 2023 Cuban immigrant who was working as an insurance customer rep, died after she and the driver of a 27-foot boat were thrown into the water.
Witnesses said the boat began spinning out of control and struck the woman near a popular sandbar gathering spot, news sites reported. The driver of the boat was injured and was treated at a local hospital.
Florida Department of Financial Services records show Balmaseda Orellanas was licensed as a customer rep in 2023, and had worked at Univista Insurance, a multi-line insurance agency with offices in Miami.
The incidents came eight months after an August collision in Biscayne Bay killed three three girls.
Photo: Part of Biscayne Bay (AdobeStock)
The most important insurance news,in your inbox every business day.
Get the insurance industry’s trusted newsletter
