On the afternoon of Sunday, September 2nd, rangers received a report of a fight in progress at the sand bar at Sands Cut. Upon arrival, they found four injured people in a boat who’d been assaulted by more than 15 people from another boat. The four were bleeding from injuries caused by broken bottles being tossed into their boat and from being punched and kicked by their assailants. The four victims were part of a larger group of boaters who were consuming alcoholic beverages and partying in the waist-deep area of the sand bar. Rangers were able to extricate them only after tying a line to their vessel and pulling them out of the cluster of vessels. It quickly became evident that the many vessels in the area would have to be moved in order for emergency personnel to restore order, secure the crime scene, and render emergency first aid. The rangers were assisted by Florida Fish and Wildlife and Miami Dade County marine units. Following consultation with the rangers and assisting officers, chief ranger Stephen Clark decided to close the area. Although there were between 400 and 500 boats and thousands of people in the immediate area, it was cleared within about 45 minutes. Sands Cut, located approximately 10 miles from the mainland, has for many years been a favorite spot for weekend boaters. In recent years, though, there’s been a tremendous increase in visitation, use and incidents, ranging from fights and other assaults to drug use and public intoxication. This increase has occurred despite targeted law enforcement patrols. The sheer number of individuals and boats at the sand bar make it extremely difficult to patrol and control the area. In order to more effectively manage the area, the superintendent recently implemented a change in the compendium limiting the number of vessels rafted together to five vessels and establishing a minimum distance of 100 feet between each group of boats.
