A beautiful smile, we’ll see no more…

Our 18-year-old daughter, Danielle Marie Gailey, was a warm, sensitive, caring, happy, intelligent and loving individual who was always smiling. Her smile and energy lit up every room she entered. Danielle was a 2nd year college student who was working towards her career while preparing for her wedding and the role of stepmother to her fiancé’s 3-year-old son. She was also looking forward to her sister’s high school graduation and her brother’s wedding. Danielle had a bright future ahead of her. That future was snatched away in seconds.

Danielle is not alive to describe for you the horrible details of the injuries she received and the suffering she endured for 4 days in a trauma center. I am her mother and on behalf of Danielle and her father, I will tell you what we know.

On July 7, 1996, our daughter, Danielle, went on vacation with her fiancé, Mike, to Wildwood. She was ecstatic and we were equally happy for them, never guessing for a moment that her kisses and waves good-bye would be the last ones we would ever experience. What was supposed to be a happy time for Danielle and Mike turned into the worst nightmare ever imaginable. It turned our world upside down and left us all heartbroken for a life time.

On Wednesday, July 10, Danielle and Mike rented waverunners at an area marina. Danielle was always careful, aware, and cautious. This is why she asked several questions that pertained to her safety, including one about what would happen if she fell off her waverunner. She was told that someone would be with her to help her. Her other questions were answered in a manner that satisfied her enough that she proceeded with the rental. The guide never stayed out in the water with them. Danielle and Mike were the only 2 people in the water when a 25 foot boat entered the area where they were riding. Danielle’s waverunner was hit in the right rear by the front of this 25 foot boat sending her into the water. The operator of the boat then proceeded to turn the boat, which sent the propellers directly at my daughter. Yes, she was hit by the propellers causing severe damage and multiple injuries to her body. The strike left her floating face down and unconscious in the water for her fiancé to discover when he turned to look for her. The propellers cut through her chest, ribs, abdomen, back, liver and leg severing her hipbone. She was taken to an area hospital then air lifted to Cooper Trauma Center in Camden. She was unconscious and almost bled to death in the helicopter.

While this horrible experience was happening to my beautiful daughter, her father and I were shopping for her fiancées birthday present and planning a little surprise party for him. His birthday was July 12, the day they were planning to return home, and my birthday was July 13. There are no words that can describe what we felt when we were confronted by Danielle’s aunt as we arrived home—“There’s been an accident.” And even worse than the news of the accident is what we were told by the doctors when we arrived at the hospital and what our eyes had to witness when we finally were allowed to see our Danielle. To see the daughter you love so very much, the daughter you are supposed to protect and help, a daughter who was so vibrant, full of life and so beautiful as she lie motionless on a hospital bed with her blood of life literally dripping out of her body on to the floor is not a site meant for human loving eyes. Danielle was strong in nature and she fought for her life for four days undergoing 5 or more surgeries. We lost count. My daughter’s body could not even be put together because the doctors had to keep reentering to try to stop internal bleeding and repair the damage a little at a time. We were informed that if Danielle survived she would need many operations. So, Danielle rested on a hospital bed with blood dripping from her body hitting the floor as the hospital continued to administer blood to her trying to save her life. Danielle’s condition deteriorated, her lung collapsed, and her body swelled extensively because of the immense amounts of fluid she had to be given. On July 14, 1996 Danielle lost her fight. Our daughter died and our happy world as we knew it ended.

This collision should not have happened in the first place, but we are convinced that if she had not been hit by the propellers, Danielle would have survived the accident. To have something this horrible happen to someone you love and know in your heart it could have been prevented is the worst kind of torture to endure. Our daughter died because of the severe injuries sustained from the boat’s propellers.

Life is miserable without our daughter. We don’t want to see anyone else have to experience such an accident. If Danielle was here today, she would want to warn others of this danger and what could happen to them if they were struck by propellers. Nothing can bring Danielle back but other accidents and lives can be prevented with proper water safety training and equipping propellers with guards.

Danielle, we miss you more and more with each passing day and we will love you forever!!!!

Your story of a propeller strike can help inform.

As a victim of a propeller strike, we know retelling your story is reliving it. This is hard. You want to put it behind you, focus on the healing, on the future and to make the best of what you have left. We respect that. However, you can help SPIN by telling your story. You may just reach out with the story that prevents the next accident and saves a future propeller victim. Your story will reach the U.S.Coast Guard and be available to policy makers and legislators.

You may contact us in many ways:

S.P.I.N. - Stop Propeller Injuries Now
2365 Conejo Court
Los Osos, CA, 93402
tel. 805-528-0554 - fax. 805-526-8756
email: spinsafety@gmail.com