Gust of wind drags windsurfer across street in Nahant

NAHANT – A windsurfer was seriously injured in a freak accident over the weekend, when a gust of wind caught his sail and dragged him across a road and into rocks.
Donald Burnett of Marblehead remains in a Boston hospital and was scheduled for surgery for injuries including a broken neck suffered in the Saturday afternoon accident.
According to Police Lt. Thomas Hutton, several 911 calls came in about 2:15 p.m. Saturday reporting the injured windsurfer in the vicinity of Black Rock Beach.
Hutton, one of the first responders, said the 49-year-old male victim “was unconscious but breathing when medical personnel arrived.”
Christine Burnett said her husband was headed into surgery Monday morning.
“It was a horrific accident,” she said. “He has breaks in his neck and a lot of broken bones. He was in traction and weights to try to stabilize the breaks and to realign his spine. He has feeling in his fingers and toes and that’s important going into this surgery.”
A witness who asked not to be identified said the accident was hard to watch.
“It was a horrific things to see. He was dragged off the beach, across the rocks and across the street. No one knew who he was. It was just horrible the way his kite got launched. It was a windy day and it appears to be a fluke,” the witness said.
“He slammed into the rocks,” Hutton said. “He went across the street and into a fence. The fence is the only thing that saved him from going into the ocean. He appeared to have severe head injuries and numerous broken bones.”
The windsurfer was initially taken to Salem Hospital where he was stabilized and then airlifted to a Boston hospital.
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