Jet ski crash: police probe rental firms as man remains critical, daughter improves

Local accidentbeachFamagustaTop News Jet ski crash: police probe rental firms as man remains critical, daughter improves Jet Ski 2 Relevant News Jet ski crash: police probe rental firms as man remains critical, daughter improves 18 August 2026 A guide to summer spots across Cyprus 18 August 2026 Cyprus tourist arrivals fall 1.1% in July, 8% over seven months 18 August 2026 Natasa Christoforou 18 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Famagusta CID is continuing to take statements in its investigation into a serious maritime accident that left a 48-year-old Greek Cypriot man critically injured and his 7-year-old daughter seriously hurt, according to police. The 48-year-old remains in the intensive care unit at Nicosia General Hospital, with his condition described as extremely critical, police said in their latest update. His daughter, who suffered a serious head injury, has improved and is now in stable condition at Makarios Hospital. The accident happened in the Pernera area at midday last Saturday, police said. A jet ski driven by a 17-year-old, with an 18-year-old passenger, both Greek Cypriot, collided with a towed inflatable sofa-style tube carrying five people: two men, aged 48 and 43, and three children aged 13, 11 and 7. The five were all members of the same family, on holiday in the area. Preliminary checks suggest the jet ski was rented to the 18-year-old but was being driven by the 17-year-old, who did not hold the appropriate licence, according to police sources cited by philenews. Under the law, a jet ski can only be rented to someone over 18, regardless of whether they hold an operator’s licence. The only circumstance in which a 17-year-old is permitted to drive a powered watercraft is if they hold a trainee operator’s licence and are accompanied by a licensed operator, which does not appear to have been the case here. Police are also examining the two watersports companies involved in the accident, to establish whether they complied with the law governing powered watercraft and their rental, and in particular whether the first company had co-signed a Binding Declaration, as required by law. The Deputy Ministry of Shipping, as the authority responsible for enforcing the legislation and issuing licences to operators of powered watercraft, is assisting with the investigation. Although Parliament passed a revised legislative framework for boats last February, it has not yet come into force, Deputy Director Kyriakos Aliouris told philenews. As a result, the Pernera accident will be examined under the previous legislation, the Powered Watercraft Law, as revised in 2020. The substance of the rules does not change, however, since both the current and the new legislation apply the same provisions to jet ski rentals for people without an operator’s licence. Aliouris explained that in this case, the jet ski could have been legally rented to the 18-year-old, who could then have undergone training and co-signed the Binding Declaration. The 17-year-old, he said, should not have driven it under any circumstances under either the existing or the new legislation, with the only exception being if she held a trainee operator’s licence and was accompanied by a licensed operator. What changes under the new legislation, Aliouris said, is that it regulates boat use more comprehensively: the existing law only covers powered watercraft, while the new law covers all motorised leisure boats up to 24 metres, divided into three categories rather than the current two. He added that time is needed to implement the new legislation, since training schools still need to be established, among other requirements. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News A guide to summer spots across Cyprus Cyprus tourist arrivals fall 1.1% in July, 8% over seven months Monk, 51, remanded until October 7 over attempted murder at Paphos monastery The same conversation about lifeguards, year after year Stop making excuses. Start staffing the beaches. The Republic of Cyprus needs constant defending, and constant renewal UK issues travel warning over fertility treatment in Cyprus after IVF donor scandal Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.