Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg
At least on person has died following a two-boat collision in the Everglades in Broward County, The Miami Herald reported.
Alessandro Borgo, 32, of New Jersey, died at a hospital following the collision.
The incident happened Friday, Oct. 2, around 6:20 p.m. and involved two airboats, one carrying an operator and passenger and the other — allegedly being driven by Borgo — carrying two other passengers. The boats were traveling through the wetlands of Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area, the newspaper reported.
No other injuries were reported.
Additional information was not immediately available.
The thoughts and hearts of the attorneys and staff at Leesfield Shapiro are with the grieving family and loved ones of the man who was killed. Boating accidents are not uncommon in Florida, a state that leads the nation with well over a million registered vessels. Our personal injury attorneys handle numerous cases of preventable injuries and wrongful deaths due to mechanical malfunctions, negligent and reckless boaters, and other accidents out on the water every year.
As a result of this experience, our Founder and Managing Partner, Ira Leesfield, has remained committed to highlighting the dangers present on the water.
“The dangers from boating incidents are entirely underestimated as South Florida becomes more congested, drinking on the water becomes more prevalent and distractions from cell phones and other devices increases,” he said. “Important safety standards must be enforced on all watercrafts.”
Leesfield Shapiro
For five decades, Leesfield Shapiro has represented injured clients and grieving families throughout Florida who were involved in various accidents. From negligent security incidents at the state’s beachside hotels, cruise ship excursions gone wrong, and devastating boating accidents, our attorneys have handled them all.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission revealed in their 2025 report—the year with the latest data publicly available—that there were nearly 700 reportable boating accidents for that year with 51 deaths and the injury to 437 people. About 67% of boaters involved in fatal boating accidents for that year had no formal boater’s education.
Monroe County, where Leesfield Shapiro has represented countless clients over the decades, was the area with the highest number of accidents and injuries in the state. At least one person died in a 2025 Monroe County boating accident and 56 others were injured.
Over the years, Mr. Leesfield and the attorneys at Leesfield Shapiro have been strong advocates for sober boating, life jacket use and other critical safety practices to help prevent these tragedies.
Ongoing Boating and Water-Related Incidents
Leesfield Shapiro attorneys handle numerous tragic and preventable boating cases every year. Partner Justin B. Shapiro and Evan Robinson, a Trial Attorney at the firm, are representing a teen who suffered a traumatic brain injury as the result of a water tubing accident.
Mr. Shapiro and Trial Attorney Eric Shane are representing a young girl who was enrolled in a South Florida summer camp when her leg was lacerated and nearly amputated by a boat propeller.
Leesfield Shapiro is also representing those affected by the tragic sailboat-barge crash in Miami on July 28, including 13-year-old Erin Ko, who tragically died, and 7-year-old Calena Areyan Gruber, who survived.
That case is being handled by Mr. Shapiro and Trial Attorney Bernardo Pimentel II.
Previous Cases
Previously, the firm secured a substantial settlement in a case involving a minor who lost a leg while not being supervised on a vessel.
The firm previously handled the case of a family whose young son was snorkeling when he was hit and killed by a passing boater. The boater in that case was also a minor who should never have been given permission to operate the vessel without supervision. Not only did this minor not stop, but he attempted to cover up evidence and lied to police when questioned.
Neighbors later testified that this minor regularly operated the boat in a reckless manner.
The firm represented the family of a young woman, 20, who tragically died when the vessel she was on crashed into a concrete dock. The firm secured over $1.3 million for the family when it was revealed that the boat operator had been drinking and speeding the night of the crash.
In a jet ski and boat crash, Leesfield Shapiro attorneys secured $935,750 for their client.
In a boat case involving a foreign resort, the firm secured an $800,000 recovery for the injured client.
Another boating accident involving a negligent operator resulted in a $500,000 recovery.
In addition to boating accident litigation, Leesfield Shapiro has represented the victims of various water-related accidents, including drownings, jet ski crashes, parasailing, and other recreational activities.
The firm represented the widow of a man who drowned while on a boat tour at the Dry Tortugas National Park. The company’s tour guides instructed the man where he should go to snorkel and, within minutes, his body was found unresponsive.
The firm secured a six-figure recovery in that case.
Mr. Pimentel represented the family of a young man and father-to-be who was lobster diving when he was killed by a law enforcement officer who negligently failed to adhere to divers-down flag laws.
