Created: 6/5/2006 9:27:22 PM 
By Kyle Meenan First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- A New York man died from injuries he sustained in a jet skiing accident at the Fort George River at Little Talbot Island.
According to Fish & Wildlife, 24-year-old Pavel Brutskiy was jumping waves, when according to witnesses, he flew about eight feet into the air.
"From the witnesses vantage point it looked like he landed --maybe head-first on the personal watercraft," said Fish & Wildlife Lieutenant Gary Klein.
And Lieutenant Klein says Monday's fatality was not the first serious mishap.
"We've had numerous accidents at this very location. People have broken their vertebrae, broken their legs."
"Those personal watercraft can go 60-to-70mph. At that speed you hit something (a wave) shaped like a ramp --it's going to launch you up in the air," said Lt. Klein.
Klein says there's a practical, safe approach to riding personal watercraft.
"If you just ride into an area where the waters are fairly smooth --you see a wake coming and you slow down so you don't get launched quite so high."
But, Klein says, there are other riders who specifically come to places like the Fort George River where gnashing currents produce a consistent chop.
"A lot of time, that's what people purchase personal watercraft for. They like to come out in this area. It's a very popular area, where they like to come out and jump waves. It's sort of an inherently dangerous aspect of the sport of personal watercraft," said Klein.
Brutskiy's death marks the fourth water-related fatality in Duval County this year.
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