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Boatie dies and another fights for his life in hospital after two boats collide as a large search is launched for other people on board.
A desperate search for a missing person is underway after a boat accident south of Perth has left one dead and another fighting for life in hospital.
Police were called to an area near Pinjarra Road and Soldiers Cove Terrace in Mandurah just after 10pm on Saturday to report that a boat had collided with another ship.
One person died at the scene while the other was taken to Royal Perth Hospital in critical condition.
It is not clear how many people were on board each boat at the time of the accident near the Mandurah bridge.
On Saturday night, Duty Inspector Vic Hussey said police were searching the water for other people who were possibly missing.
A search operation is underway for a missing person after a fatal boating accident near the Mandurah Bridge (pictured), in Mandurah, south of Perth.
“We are currently searching the water for potentially at least one person who may be missing from a ship that was involved in a collision,” he said.
“Unfortunately, there is one person who has passed away as a result of this collision.”
Inspector Hussey said a “significant amount of police resources” were involved in the search and investigators are still working to determine what happened.
Mandurah is a large regional seaside town about 70 km from central Perth that is home to over 90,000 people.
The tragedy comes after revelers had to be rescued from a boat in Freemantle after it crashed into a navigation marker just before 4:30pm on Saturday.
The impact caused some members of the group, who were on board to celebrate a 26th birthday, to fall and the boat began to fill with water.
Guests were provided with life jackets and the damaged boat was sailed back to the boat harbor, with no injuries reported.
More to come.