By Ben Ashford,Editor

Copyright dailymail

The State Department has issued a dire warning to American tourists after a decorated US serviceman was killed and two more vacationers hurt in multiple jet ski accidents on the same day in the Bahamas.

Robert Rosa, 41, a Second Lieutenant in the Alaska Air National Guard, was knocked unconscious after colliding with a 38-foot tour boat off the coast of Paradise Island in Nassau, the Bahamian capital.

The ‘devoted’ dad-of-two suffered severe head and leg injuries and was dead by the time rescuers pulled him from the sea.

US officials say Rosa – who was on vacation with his wife Kaity, 36 – was ‘not at fault’ in the ‘heartbreaking’ August 31 incident which is being investigated by the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

Later that same day, two American men aged 29 and 42 were injured but not badly hurt when they lost control of their jet ski and slammed into a dock.

The two incidents are the latest in a string of accidents in Bahamian waters that have killed several people, left others with severed limbs and prompted urgent safety warnings.

The US Embassy in Nassau has banned its employees from operating jet skis and on Friday issued similar guidance to travelers flocking to the popular vacation spot renowned for its powder-white beaches, snorkeling, and watersports.

‘The US Embassy is working with the Bahamian government to address the persistence of deaths, injuries and sexual assaults associated with the minimally regulated small watercraft industry,’ announced Chargé d’affaires Kimberly Furnish.

‘Personnel under US Embassy authority are currently prohibited from renting or operating jet skis, and American visitors to The Bahamas are warned about the dangers of renting or operating a jet ski around New Providence and Paradise Island.’

Furnish also called on the Bahamian government ‘to investigate and seek justice’ for Rosa’s shattered family from Wasilla, Alaska.

‘He served his country honorably and we are deeply saddened by his passing. He was not at fault in this incident,’ she added.

The guardsman’s mother-in-law Franci Viens paid tribute to him as a doting dad who ‘dedicated his life to service, leadership, and protecting others’.

‘Instead of planning his retirement party from the Air Force, we are now facing the unimaginable task of planning his funeral,’ she wrote on a GoFundMe appeal which has raised more than $8,000.

‘Beyond his uniform, he was a devoted husband, loving father of two boys, loyal son, and friend to so many. His kindness, sense of humor, and dedication to his family will never be forgotten.’

The State Department currently considers the Bahamas a ‘Level 2’ risk for travelers, urging increased caution due to violent crime, gang activity, and maritime accidents.

‘Boating is not well regulated. Injuries and deaths have occurred,’ a March advisory noted. ‘Watercraft may not be safe, and some operators are not licensed or insured.’

At least four Americans have been injured in previous accidents over the past year, two of them needing to be airlifted to the US for medical treatment.

In March, a 73-year-old British woman died when she lost control of her jet ski and smashed into a pier while enjoying a cruise with her husband.

Other victims include a US Marine who had his right arm severed when a motorboat hit him during a diving drill close to a submarine training base.

In May, Miles College graduate Hannah Smith, 22, lost both her legs when she fell off a pontoon boat as it docked in Nassau and she was dragged into the propeller.

Another US travel alert issued in April urged female tourists to be especially careful because ‘Nassau jet ski operators have raped and sexually assaulted US citizen women’.

The warning said three rapes had occurred in the previous month and two in 2024.

‘Women victims reported that male jet ski operators picked them up from downtown Nassau and Paradise Island beaches,’ it said.

‘The victims said they were raped and assaulted on isolated islands.’

As recently as September 1, an 18-year-old American tourist told police she was sexually assaulted at a resort in Paradise Island. A 28-year-old man was arrested in relation to the case.

The Royal Bahamas Police Force is still probing several of the above incidents, including Lt. Rosa’s death.

‘Police are investigating a boating accident at sea that occurred Sunday, 31st August, which resulted in the death of an adult male of US nationality,’ the force said in a statement.

‘Shortly after 11:30am officers from the Marine Support Services Branch responded to a collision involving a vessel and a jet ski in waters off Paradise Island.

‘The male rider of the jet ski was found unresponsive with visible injuries. Medical personnel visited the scene, examined the victim but found no vital signs of life.

‘Investigations into this matter continue.