FORT MYERS BEACH -- A vacationing Kentucky woman and her 13-year-old daughter died yesterday afternoon while parasailing after they plunged 200 feet into the surf.

Lisabeth Hope Bailey Straney, 37, died at Lee Memorial Hospital; her daughter, Taylor, died at HealthPark Medical Center, according to hospital officials and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The Straneys were from Vine Grove, Ky., where their family owns the Lincoln Trail Country Club.

An employee at the club's golf course, Bobby Bridges, said Hope Straney ran the restaurant and her husband, Keena, was in charge of the golf course. Keena Straney was headed to Fort Myers Beach last night, said a family member answering the phone at their home.

According to witnesses, strong winds from an approaching storm appeared to play a part in the accident. The captain of the boat that was hauling the mother and daughter was trying to reel them back down to the boat when high winds hit.

Other beachgoers said the pair fell into water that was only about 3 feet deep.

The accident happened at 12:30 p.m. as the approaching storm whipped up waves and prompted a heavy downpour. Also on the boat were Kristen Bailey, 18, Taylor's half sister from Lawrence, Ga., and Catherine Glacken, 18, a friend of the Straneys from Radcliff, Ky.

The 400-foot rope that had connected the Straneys to a boat that was pulling the parasail somehow disconnected, said Sgt. Mike Frantz of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The harness holding the mother and daughter fell apart, said Lt. Gary Morse, a Fish and Wildlife spokesman. A preliminary investigation led the commission to say the two died as a result of a combination of a harness failure and deteriorating weather, Morse said.

Klaus Westerville of South Carolina was watching from a hotel room as the rainbow-colored parachute glided through the air just before the accident. ''I turned to my wife and said, 'There are people parasailing. I can't believe it,' '' Westerville said.

Seconds later, a heavy wind swept up the parachute.

''It went off like a rocket,'' said Westerville, who watched as the Straneys headed straight for the Holiday Inn and other nearby hotels.

The parachute twisted three times as it rose, and the women started falling, Westerville said.

Clark Shedden, another witness, said, ''Just as I looked up the rope broke, falling in an arc-like shape. One the women was horizontal, she was flailing. It was like she just fell from the sky.''

More than a dozen people ran to the victims as the Premium Parasail boat from AA Parasail and Waverunners Etc. Inc. headed to shore.

Two German tourists, Connie Meermann, 45, and Chris Liberis, 50, watched the Straneys fall into the surf in front of their beach chairs. Liberis was the first to reach them, and Meermann ran for help.

''The young girl moved her hands and her lips, but she couldn't say anything,'' Liberis said.

Hope Straney was unconscious, he said.

Liberis dragged the Straneys out of the water, and Fort Myers Beach paramedics rushed up minutes later.

''It was bad,'' said Capt. David Evanson, one of the first paramedics to reach the water's edge. ''We just got them on the ambulance as soon as we could.'' Evanson said it was obvious they had suffered several fractures and internal injuries.

The fish and wildlife commission and the U.S. Coast Guard are investigating the accident.

Phone calls to the Fort Myers parasailing company were not answered last night. The Coast Guard does not know of any complaints against the company, and the operator has the required license to operate a commercial boat with up to six people.

The company is required to have a commercial license from the town for its location and an occupational license from the county. The town also requires a certificate of insurance, which was on file, according to town manager Marsha Segal-George.