LIVINGSTON — A blood drive is happening Sunday, Aug. 4 at St. John the Evangelist Church in Plaquemine for Hunter Caballero, who is still in the ICU after a boating accident that occurred July 28 on the Tickfaw River. The blood drive will take place from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Caballero has already needed 14 pints of blood, according to his grandmother Susan Jumonville. The drive will help replace the pints of blood that Caballero has needed from his injuries, and he will also receive financial credits for each pint donated for him.
Shortly after midnight on July 28, a 25-foot pontoon party barge and a 25-foot Sea Fox boat collided near Kings Point in Livingston Parish on the Tickfaw River.
Thuy Gustin and Chase Sharkey, who was driving the pontoon, died in the collision. Six others, three from each boat, were taken to North Oaks Hospital in Hammond with injuries ranging from broken bones to head injuries. Four people remain hospitalized, Sgt. Randy Lanoux with LDWF told UWK.
After the accident, Caballero swam around to save the others and bring them back to the overturned boat, not realizing his injuries were among the worst, Jumonville told UWK. She said her grandson is a “big-hearted boy” and people know him for that.
“He was looking for his girlfriend and he could hear her screaming,” she said. Caballero’s girlfriend, Jillian Bernard, had broken her leg and injured her hip and knee in the collision, so she was unable to swim.
DONATE NOW TO SUPPORT JILLIAN BERNARD’S RECOVERY
Caballero’s muscles and tendons had pulled away from his bones due to the impact of the incident. Doctors initially did not find any internal bleeding, but discovered later that “tiny vessels” had blown out and began leaking blood, Jumonville said.
DONATE NOW TO SUPPORT HUNTER CABALLERO’S RECOVERY
LDWF reported that no one was wearing a personal flotation device at the time of the collision.
“I’ve worked repeated accidents over the years; life jackets save lives,” Lanoux said. “A lot of people overestimate their swimming ability. Yeah, you can swim fine in a swimming pool, but when you’re not prepared to be thrown into the water and you’re thrown into the water and you’re injured, it’s going to have a bad outcome. Life jackets save lives.”
The investigation into the crash continues and charges could be coming, including DWI, but officials must wait on test results to come back before proceeding with anything further.
Arrangements for the victims
Chase Sharkey, of Greensburg, died in the crash. He was the founder of Sharkey Mechanical Services, LLC. His funeral arrangements are as follows:
Visitation at First Baptist Church of Amite from 9 a.m. until noon service on Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024.
Arrangements for Thuy Gustin have not been announced at this time.
Download the Unfiltered with Kiran app from the Apple App Store and Google Play to stay updated on the latest news across the Capital area.
