In news reports today, including this one from USA Today, a high-speed commuter ferry slammed into a Lower Manhattan dock Wednesday, injuring 57 people.
According to the article, “Officer Sophia Tassy, a spokeswoman for the NYPD, said the Seastreak Wall Street ferry, a commuter run from New Jersey to lower Manhattan along the East River, crashed during a hard landing around 8:43 a.m ET. The ferry, which left Highlands, N.J., at 8 a.m., actually struck a loading barge that it was passing while trying to dock, Seastreak President James Barker told New York’s WNBC-TV.”
The Seastreak ferry service offers high-speed catamaran services to points in Manhattan from central New Jersey with a fleet of five ferries, the company says on its website. Four of the ferries have capacities of up to 400 passengers and one with capacity of up to 149 passengers.
Also quoted in the story was attorney John Hession…
“You’d have to suspect there was negligence,” involved in this accident, says maritime attorney John Hession, who was a lead maritime counsel for litigation after a 2003 Staten island ferry crash that killed 11 people.
Hession stressed that he doesn’t know all the facts, but said that he thinks negligence would be a factor since it was a relatively clear day and the ferry was equipped with modern equipment that would help to avoid a major collision.
While accidents like this occur from time to time, it remains to be seen whether negligence or other circumstances played a part. Injured parties, however, will likely be seeking answers regarding their legal rights.
If you have a question about this accident or an accident you may have been involved in while on a boat, ferry, cruise ship or other vessel, please contact the attorneys at Waks and Barnett at 1-800-905-2891 or online at CruiseLawyers.com.