Fernandez spent final hours at nightclub
The Marlins pitching ace killed in a boating accident was partying at a Miami hot spot about 90 minutes before the crash, club operators said Monday.
Jose Fernandez and at least one of the two pals who died in the fatal accident were at the American Social Bar & Kitchen in the city’s fashionable Miami River District at around 2 a.m. Sunday, the club confirmed.
“Jose Fernandez was a guest at American Social,” according to a statement from the night spot. “We would like to extend our sincerest condolences, thoughts and prayers to the families involved in this tragic boating accident and to the Miami Marlins organization.”
The wreckage was found at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday by a Coast Guard crew on routine patrol off Miami Beach, officials said.
The nightclub declined to say whether alcohol was served — though investigators said Sunday there was no immediate evidence that booze or illegal drugs played a role in the fatal crash.
Officials conceded that any final answer to that question won’t be known until toxicology tests come back.
Fernandez, 24, was killed along with Emilio Jesus Macias, 27, and Eduardo Rivero, 25, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Investigators also revealed Monday that the 32-foot powerboat carrying the three men was registered to Fernandez.
It still wasn’t clear on Monday who was operating it.
Florida manufacturer SeaVee Boats confirmed Monday that its 320Z vessel — which tops out at 68 mph — was the one involved in Sunday’s tragedy.
A deadly combination of speed and darkness likely contributed to the tragedy, investigators said.
There were 569 fatal accidents involving recreational boats, taking 626 lives in the US in 2015, according to data compiled by the Coast Guard’s Office of Auxiliary and Boating Safety.