NY ferry: People thrown about on impact
2013-01-09 20:43
New York - At least 57 people were injured, two
critically, when a commuter ferry struck a dock in New York City's financial
district during Wednesday morning's rush hour, officials said.
A corner of the ferry was ripped open, and passengers
said people fell on each other, screaming and crying.
One witness said a ferry employee moments before the
accident had mentioned the boat's recent trouble with manoeuvring.
Passengers aboard the Seastreak Wall Street ferry said
scores of people who had been waiting to disembark were hurled to the deck by
the impact.
"We were pulling into the dock. The boat hit the
dock. We just tumbled on top of each other. I got thrown into everybody else...
People were hysterical," said Ellen Foran.
Firefighters were still carrying people away on
stretchers an hour after the crash.
Most of the injuries were minor.
More than 340 passengers and crew members were aboard the
ferry from New Jersey, one of many that carry commuters to the island of
Manhattan.
Dee Wertz was on shore waiting for the ferry and saw the
impact.
She said she had been talking with a ferry employee about
how the boat's captains had been complaining lately about its manoeuvrability.
"He was telling me that none of these guys like this
boat," Wertz said.
"It was coming in a little wobbly. It hit the right
side of the boat on the dock hard, like a bomb."
Rushing to safety
After the impact, the boat was able to dock normally.
Wertz said passengers raced off once the ramp came down.
"I think people just wanted to get the heck off the
boat as soon as they could," she said.
People answering the phone at Seastreak's offices in New
Jersey referred questions to a lawyer, who did not immediately return phone
messages.
In 2003, 11 people were killed when a Staten Island Ferry
crashed into a city pier after its pilot passed out at the wheel.
Three people were badly hurt and about 40 injured when
the same ferry hit the same pier in 2010 because of a mechanical problem.
The National Transportation Safety Board said on Wednesday
it had dispatched investigators to the scene.
Police said the ferry crew passed alcohol breath tests
given after the crash.
- AP
