By John Holland
Sun-Sentinel
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Quick, you’ve got to see this...Oooh, I hope he’s all right...What was he thinking?
That’s how many viewers reacted as they watched a Fort Lauderdale kite surfer slam at astonishing speed into the wall of a beachside restaurant, then sprawl motionless on the pavement.
What they may not know is that Kevin Kearney had just come ashore for safety reasons when an unexpected blast of wind spun off by Tropical Storm Fay landed him in the hospital and put him on computer and television screens around the world.
Kearney, 28, remained in critical condition Tuesday at Broward General Hospital, where his mother and friends kept watch.
Shortly before 5 p.m. Monday, a sudden gust caught Kearney’s parachute-like kite and dragged him more than 100 feet across State Road A1A in Fort Lauderdale.
The video - captured by CBS4 photographer Yuseith Osorio and quickly posted on YouTube, CNN and other Web sites accessible worldwide - shows Kearney plunge about 15 feet downward into the sand, then take off rapidly and horizontally behind the parachute, his hands jerked forward.
The harrowing flight ends with Kearney crashing into the side of the Oasis Restaurant, where he is quickly tended to by lifeguard-paramedics.
Those familiar with kite surfing on Broward beaches said it was an unfortunate accident.
Kearney and several other kite surfers had been hundreds of yards offshore Monday, taking advantage of the winds spawned by Fay, when weather conditions worsened and they decided to quit for the day, said Fort Lauderdale Fire-Rescue Lt. Gio Serrano.
Kearney came ashore south of Las Olas Boulevard and was preparing to take off his equipment when the wind suddenly kicked up.
“They were all coming into the beach to be safe because the weather had started to turn,” Serrano said. “It was just a freak accident.”
Alicia Paradise-Garza said her son, a 2003 graduate of Penn State recently laid off from his information technology job, was an experienced practitioner of the sport.
“He has been teaching kite surfing down in the Keys and doing a lot of kite surfing with his friends here while looking for a job,” his mother said. “He is very good at it and really liked it.”
The sport, a hybrid with elements of surfing, parasailing and gliding, is growing quickly in Florida and elsewhere, veteran surfers said Tuesday.
“Even when there’s no hurricane coming, you have to check constantly for squalls, because one minute you have nothing and the next, winds are 50 mph,” said Graham Goodwin, a licensed instructor and owner of Fort Lauderdale Kite Surfing.
Goodwin said equipment, including a helmet, harness and parachute, costs about $1,500. Harnesses include an emergency escape cord, but based on the video, Kearney was moving far too quickly to react, Goodwin said.
Kearney’s family issued a brief statement Tuesday. “Kevin is an experienced kite-boarder and an all around great guy,” the family said. “We thank everyone for their well wishes during this difficult time.”
SunSentinel video journalist Tiffany Ellis contributed to this report.