Boat propeller kills man trying to save fallen fiancée during Keys fishing tournament, FWC says

A Pinecrest man died after being hit by a boat propeller during a Florida Keys fishing tournament Saturday afternoon.

Juan Carlos Escotet Alviarez, 31, jumped in the water to save his fiancée — who fell from the stern of the 60-foot vessel on which they were fishing for sailfish about six miles east of Ocean Reef Club in north Key Largo, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Immediately upon entering the water, Escotet Alviarez was hit by the propeller and died from his injuries, the FWC said in an accident report the agency released Sunday evening.

Escotet Alviarez and his fiancée, Andrea Montero, 30, were anglers in a fishing tournament organized by Ocean Reef Club, an exclusive gated community in north Key Largo. The boat was moving backwards, according to the FWC, indicating anglers were fighting a game fish when the tragedy happened.

Montero managed to stay clear of the propellers and was not seriously injured, said Officer Jason Rafter, an FWC spokesman.

She did hit her head, however, but it’s not clear if that was while falling or when the boat’s crew pulled her back in using a flotation ring they threw her. South Florida experienced high winds and high seas over the weekend, making the rescue difficult for the crew.

“Rough as it was, she couldn’t say whether it was when she went over or coming back in. She doesn’t remember when it happened,” Rafter said.

Montero could not be reached for comment.

Ocean Reef made international headlines a week earlier after 356 Haitian migrants arrived about 200 yards off its oceanfront property in a large wooden boat — one of the largest migrant events in South Florida in recent memory.

According to Venezuelan newspaper, El Nacional, Escotet Alviarez is the son of billionaire Juan Carlos Escotet Rodriguez, president of Venezuelan bank Banesco and Spanish bank Abanca.

Escotet Alviarez was director of Banesco USA, the U.S. division of Banesco, according to the company’s website. The company has not released any statement on the incident. The company also did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Escotet Alviarez’s family could not be reached.

The bank’s website says Escotet Alviarez has “vast experience in real estate development in the Miami area.” He graduated from the University of Miami.

Escotet and Alviarez were scheduled to get married in November, according to news reports.

The investigation into the incident is ongoing — meaning details into exactly what happened could be months away. However, anglers and fishing professionals will tell you that a fun day on the water can turn tragic in an instant.

“If I’m backing down on a fish and someone falls in while the boat is going backwards, there is a real possibility that they are going to end up in the propeller,” said Larry Wren, captain of First Choice Charters, a fishing boat based in Islamorada.

Wren compared it to driving a car in reverse at a slow speed with someone sitting on the trunk.

“If you fall off, you’re under the vehicle,” Wren said.

The size of the boat, built by Spencer Yachts, also means that the propeller was as large as 36 inches in diameter and likely razor sharp. Wren noted that anyone coming into contact with its blades is not likely to survive.

“It’s a tragedy, but it can happen any day. It’s the same as a marlin jumping into the boat and spearing someone. It happens,” he said.