KEY LARGO -- The recreation boat was cruising through Jewfish Creek Channel about 30 mph in the dark Saturday evening when 7-year-old Alexis Beckman heard her teenage cousin shout a warning: ``Marker, marker!''

It was too late. Gregg Glausen of Key Largo drove his 24-foot vessel into the red steel channel marker No. 32. The impact sent Glausen, the two girls, his female friend and Glausen's dog tumbling into 30-foot deep water.

As the boat -- called Family Affair -- sank, Glausen rescued his wounded yellow Labrador, Prince, swam a few yards to the mangroves and fled, leaving his injured passengers: Alexis; her mother, Elizabeth McDonnell, 38; and a cousin, Mary Kilmartin, 16, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigators.

Glausen was arrested Monday evening over leaving the scene of a boat accident, a third-degree felony, and reckless operation of a vessel, a misdemeanor. He was taken to the Plantation Key jail and will be transferred to the Monroe County Detention Center on Stock Island for a bond hearing Tuesday.

''It's appalling what Glausen did,'' Michael Beckman, Alexis' father, said Monday. ``They need to make a statement of this guy.''

The marker the boat struck is located about five yards from shore. The channel is about 50 yards wide.

''It's pretty hard to hit if you are paying attention,'' said Richard Beckman, Alexis' grandfather, who regularly boats on the channel.

CALL TO AUTHORITIES

Glausen, 56, called Conservation Commission investigator Carlo Morato on Sunday from Fort Lauderdale and told him he had a couple of drinks earlier in the day, but was not drunk at the time of the accident, commission spokesman Bobby Dube said.

''The girls said the driver had been drinking. That's probably why he left the scene,'' Dube said.

No one on board was wearing a life jacket when the boat crashed. Alexis said her head went under the water, but her mother grabbed her to keep her afloat.

''I was scared of alligators,'' said the second-grader, who suffered facial injuries and bruises all over her 49-pound body.

Her mother -- who is Beckman's ex-wife -- received stitches at Mariner's Hospital in Tavernier for a gash on her head.

The other girl on the boat suffered a separated shoulder and bruises.

''Mary thought she was paralyzed and was going to die,'' said her mother, Kim. ``She said she is never going to get on another boat as long as she lives.''

Alexis said they screamed for help after the crash. A few minutes later, another boat arrived and took them to nearby Gilbert's Resort & Marina.

Meanwhile, a dripping wet Glausen, who had minor cuts on his face, got a ride two miles back to his home at Moon Bay Condominiums, where he kept his boat, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office. Glausen told the driver he had to quickly find a veterinarian for his dog, according a sheriff's report.

The fate of Prince is not known.

Michael Beckman arrived at Gilbert's Resort after his ex-wife called him, and was shocked to see his daughter.

''She was bleeding with a big chunk out of her face and head,'' he said. ``But she was a soldier and did not cry through this.''

Alexis was taken to Baptist Hospital and then Jackson Memorial Hospital, where plastic surgeons repaired nerve damage to her face and stitched up gashes above her left eye and left cheek.

Afterward, Beckman started driving his daughter back to Key Largo but got caught in traffic from the NASCAR race in Homestead.

DAD `RELIEVED'

''I was aggravated with the traffic, but realized I could be making funeral arrangements,'' he said. ``I was relieved I was bringing my baby home.''

Beckman said it's not known how much of his daughter's nerve damage will be permanent. Her smile droops on the left side, but doctors are hopeful it will return to normal in a year or so.

The injuries did not stop Alexis from returning to Key Largo School Monday morning to keep her perfect attendance record intact.

She already knows what she wants to be when she grows up: ``A doctor.''

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