Safety scrutinized after drowning at Boca Bash

BOCA RATON – Boca Bash is one big party on the water, but this year, for the first time, not everyone made it out alive. And that has police studying ways to make the event safer next year.

Police say Francis Roselin, 32, of West Palm Beach, drowned Sunday while trying to swim out to dozens of boats tied together in the middle of Lake Boca for the raucous celebration that has become a yearly tradition.

“I’m always saddened to hear of a tragedy in our city,” Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer said.

“Law enforcement does its best to keep people safe, especially when large groups of people come in.’’

Boca Raton officials say they cannot keep boaters from anchoring in Lake Boca, a stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway controlled by the state.

But on Monday, Police Chief Dan Alexander said he and his staff plan to review what they might do differently next year.

That could include assigning more police marine units to the event.

This year, Boca Police had four marine units on patrol and other officers stationed at the boat ramp and surrounding neighborhoods.

“We don’t have lifeguards out there,” police spokesman Mark Economou said.

“We do have marine units. And all those boats tied together makes it difficult to get to people. We’re going to look