Hitchcock man killed, woman critically injured when boat crashes into low bridge A 26-year-old boater was killed, and a woman onboard remains hospitalized after the 16-foot center console vessel collided with a low bridge along a waterway leading into Highland Bayou. The crash happened at about 2:38 AM on Friday near the 9200 block of Harbor Drive. The 16-foot Weld-Craft center console boat was heading northwest when it encountered two bridges crossing the water. One of the bridges is from an abandoned roadway, while the other is Harbor Drive. Harbor Drive is a winding road that connects state Highway 6 to the Harborwalk Subdivision in Hitchcock. As the boat passed under one of the bridges, the top cover over the center console struck the bridge, knocking the pair into the water. Investigators have not yet determined how fast the boat was going when it hit the bridge. Hitchcock police received a frantic 911 call from a woman who said she was treating another woman for a head wound and that a man was missing in the water. When police and paramedics arrived, an air ambulance was dispatched to take the injured woman to UTMB Health’s Trauma Center at John Sealy Hospital. Hitchcock police called in assistance from Texas Parks and Wildlife, the Hitchcock Volunteer Fire Department, and the marine division of the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office to assist in the search for the missing man. At around 4:30 AM, the man’s body was recovered, officials said. The man was identified as Haze Gardner, 26, of Hitchcock. Images of the boat provided by the Hitchcock Police Department show the mangled top and significant damage to the boat’s console. The investigation into the crash is being conducted by Game Wardens of the Texas Parks and Wildlife with the assistance from the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Criminal Investigation Division, and the Crime Scene Unit, Sheriff Jimmy Fullen said.

Posted by i45NOW TJ Aulds at 2025-10-18 12:23:21 UTC