Phoenix rises to occasion when stepdad hurt in boat’s collision with flood debris

A Port Macquarie teenager saved his stepfather’s life after finding him floating face down and unconscious following a serious boating accident on the Hawkesbury River.

A Port Macquarie teenager saved his stepfather’s life after finding him floating face down and unconscious following a serious boating accident on the Hawkesbury River.

Jason Donovan suffered serious spinal injuries November 19, after a boating trip with his 17-year-old stepson came to an abrupt end.

Jason was driving the boat while Phoenix sat with his chair backward watching the water – a position that saved his life – when they hit a submerged object under the water.

The boat was split in half from underneath, throwing both Jason and Phoenix into the water.

“I did a 360 degree look around and I saw Jason floating face down about 30 metres away,” Phoenix said.

“I thought he was dead.”

Jason Donovan.

Phoenix during the airlift to hospital

He quickly swam over to his stepdad, flipping him over and flagging down another boat for help.

“I just kept my hand on his back to keep him up out of the water until we got him on the boat.”

The pair were flown to Royal North Shore hospital, where Jason remains due to the extent of his injuries. Phoenix escaped with just a few bumps and scrapes.

“I’ve got fractured vertebrae, the doctors have said it’s a miracle I’m not paralysed,” Jason said.

“I’ve broken my sternum, fractured my chest plate and a few ribs and taken a big gash out of my head that required 14 staples,” Jason said.

It wasn’t until a day or two after the accident that Jason realised what had happened, and that without Phoenix, he may not be here today.

“When I saw him in hospital there, I just gave him a big hug,” Jason said through tears.

“He’s my hero, I would be dead if it wasn’t for him. But I’m just glad that he is OK.

“If he was facing the other way in his chair he would have smashed head first into the dash and been really hurt.”

The damage done to Jason Donovan’s boat in a serious crash on the Hawkesbury River.

While he isn’t sure what they hit, Jason believes it was debris swept into the Hawkesbury during floods earlier this year.

Not from the area, he believed the water was clean, and with no signage on the river, believed it was safe for boating.

“My biggest concern is we’re coming into the Christmas holidays now. There’s not one sign at a boat ramp warning people that there could still be hidden debris submerged under the surface,” he said.

“I don’t want anyone else ending up like me.”

The damaged cockpit of Jason Donovan’s boat.

While more than 7000 cubic metres of flood debris have been removed from the Hawkesbury River and Central Coast waterways since March – enough to fill 86, eight-tonne trucks – the EPA has warned that more could be lurking below the surface.

“The floods have had a devastating impact and left a huge amount of debris across Hawkesbury and Central Coast waterways,” NSW EPA chief executive officer Tony Chappel said

“I expect our EPA officers will remain on the scene for some time as we work hard to remove debris safely and manage areas of contamination.

Phoenix and Jason often go boating together, with Phoenix recently earning his boat licence – but the incident has scared him off the water for the time being.

“Seeing Jason like that was tough,” he said. “I will get back out there but not for a little while.”

The boating community has thrown their support behind the pair - launching an online fundraiser to help Jason’s family while he recovers.