A boat that capsized in the Hudson River in New York City and killed two passengers apparently carrying more people than it was designed to be.
The 24-foot Yamaha AR240, called Stimulus Money, had a maximum capacity of 12 people, or about 2,698 pounds, according to specs on Hardcore marine.
Hours after the boat capsized on Tuesday afternoon, authorities said 12 people were on board. But by the end of Wednesday, police revealed at least 13 were on board.
Lindelia Vasquez, 50, who chartered the boat, and her seven-year-old relative Julian Vasquez died, and several others were injured.
Police sources said there were “no immediate signs of crime,” but exceeding the boat’s capacity could pose problems for the charter company, the boat’s owner or operator, attorney Jeffrey Goodman told the police. New York Post on Thursday.
‘There are responsibilities for the charter company, for the ship owner and the operator. I can’t say who did what wrong here,” said Goodman, a partner attorney at Saltz Mongeluzzi & Bendesky, who has represented victims’ families in other boating incidents.
Goodman continued, “Often you get boat operators who take the stance, ‘They’re a bunch of little kids, so it doesn’t matter’, which is completely against the regulations…
“Children versus adults does not change the safety threshold when it comes to overload.”
Except for Julian, it was not immediately clear how many children were on the boat.
Boats capsize most often due to weight or wave problems, or both, according to Goodman
“If a boat capsizes on its side, that’s an indication of how the weight was distributed over that boat or how waves hit that boat,” he said.
NY Waterways spokesman Wiley Norvell denied claims that a passing ferry caused Stimulus Money to overturn, saying the nearest ferry was four minutes away at the time of the accident.
“That’s a very long distance with no discernible wake,” Norvell said.
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