STEINHATCHEE, Florida — Three married couples and six children from Ocala were on the pontoon boat that killed a popular Dixie County teacher last week who was diving for scallops off the Dixie County coast, according to new information released Monday morning by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The FWC also reported Monday that Charles David Sheppard, 60, of Cross City died after apparently being cut by the propeller of an outboard motor on the pontoon boat. An autopsy at the Medical Examiner's Office in Jacksonville, which was expected to have begun Monday, will determine the exact cause of Sheppard's death. According to FWC spokeswoman Karen Parker, officials believe Sheppard was snorkeling for scallops southwest of Rocky Creek off the Dixie County coastline. Among the accident details under investigation was whether Sheppard had been using a "diver down" flag to notify boaters of his presence in the water. Immediately after Sheppard was run over, those riding on the pontoon pulled Sheppard onto the boat's deck and administered first aid while the pontoon was being driven by its owner to a Steinhatchee marina, Parker said. Once at the marina, emergency crews pronounced Sheppard dead. The pontoon's owner - who was believed to have been driving the boat at the time of the accident - was identified as Jeffrey A. Tucker, 44. The other adults on the boat included Tucker's wife, Tamara A. Tucker, 36, and two other married couples, Michael C. Wiglesworth, 43, and his wife, Nicole F. Wiglesworth, 43, along with Mark D. Baines, 43, and his wife, Jeanne Baines, 41. "Everything about the accident remains under investigation," Parker said Monday morning. Following his graduation from Dixie County High School and the University of West Florida, Sheppard was hired by the Dixie County School Board. He taught in Dixie County for 36 years, most of the time as a physical education teacher at Anderson Elementary School in Cross City. Sheppard's funeral has been scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Rick Gooding Funeral Home Chapel in Cross City. by KAREN VOYLES Florida's dangerous, diver-unfriendly waters On July 19, Lana Gandert, 58, of Edison, Ohio, died while snorkel diving with her husband and two sons at Sand Key Light, Florida.On July 17, popular elementary school teacher, David Sheppard, 60, of Cross City, died while diving off Steinhatchee, Florida, after he was hit by a boat.On July 16, Michael Manna, 46, apparently drowned five days after he married while snorkel diving at DuBois Park, Florida.On July 12, Craig Winnerman, 48, was rescued after his boat drifted away in strong winds while he was scuba diving alone near Dunedin Reef, Florida.On July 10, Richard Losz, 37, died off Hollywood, Florida, while scuba diving alone.On July 7, Daniel Goepel, 29, of Coral Springs died while snorkel diving off the Dolphin dive boat at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo.On July 5, two more divers who were diving off Hollywood, Florida, were hospitalized after they were hit by a speed boat.On July 4, searchers found the body of 31-year-old Darren Rordan who died while scuba diving off Manatee County, Florida.On June 8, the Coast Guard airlifted Bill Nelson, 55, to Shands Hospital for emergency medical treatment of potentially fatal decompression sickness (the bends) after a scuba diving accident off Tampa, Florida.On June 4, William Husic Jr, 61, a chemical engineer who resides in Brighton, died while snorkel diving at Bahia Honda State Park in the Florida Keys.On May 30, Robert A. Jones, 38, of Zephyrhills, died while solo free diving in a cave at Blue Spring State Park, Florida.On May 10, Timothy Allen, 52, and Paula Allen, 48, were rescued off Hernando Beach, Florida, after drifting in the ocean for nearly 24 hours. The couple were swept away from their boat while scuba diving in strong currents.On May 5, NOAA research diver, Dewey Smith, 36, died while diving at the Aquarius underwater laboratory in the Florida Keys.On May 3, searchers recovered the body of Michael McQuillen, 29, of Lakeland, who disappeared the day before while scuba diving with friends west of John's Pass, Florida.On April 12, Mary Darnley, a 58-year-old retired nurse from Pennsylvania who had recently learned to dive, died while scuba diving with her husband off Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Florida.On March 20, a man in his 40s who was scuba diving off the Emerald Dive Charters boat, was rushed to hospital for treatment of potentially fatal decompression sickness (the bends).On February 18, Joseph Diver, 66, was rushed to hospital after a boat struck him while he was scuba diving at Pickles Reef in the Florida Keys.On January 11, two women in their 20s were rushed to Boca Raton Community Hospital after a boat hit them off Boca Raton, Florida.On January 10, Rob Murphy, 26, lost both legs after a hit and run boat struck him while he was scuba diving near Sandsprit Park, Florida. | | Local diver and beloved elementary school teacher, David Sheppard, 60, of Cross City, Florida, died after he was hit by a boat in Florida, where at least 25 divers have been killed or injured by boats in the past five years.
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