Horrible boating accident
Most were elderly. Cause is suspected to be the wake from a larger, passing
boat.But 48 or 49 people on a 40 ft boat? http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051003/ap_on_re_us/boat_overturned Eisboch |
Eisboch
Oct 3
2005
|
| Sorry, but the bottom line when it comes to wakes was stated above: "A vessel operator is always responsible for any damage
caused by the vessel's wake." It does not matter how far his wake went. If his wake is that large,
then he needs to go slower to control his wake. Even if the 40' boat had the required personnel, it still would have
capsized. An extra man on that boat would not have saved 20 people. If
they fulfilled the other requirements i.e. number of passengers,
equipment, etc, their liability is greatly reduced. The seats weren't fixed? I'm pretty sure that's not a requirement. John |
John
Oct 4
|
| Think about that for a moment, and imagine being on a jury presiding over
these two cases: 1) Recreational boat, throwing an enormous wake, plows through a group of
small, anchored boats carrying fisherman, one mile outside of the normal
channel, in nobody's way. Someone's killed or injured. 2) Freight ship in the St. Lawrence River travels at sufficient speed to be
controllable for the prevailing wind & current conditions, in the normal
channel, obeying all rules. A small recreational boat gets too close to the
wake, someone's tossed overboard and drowns. Would you (and I specifically mean YOU) assign blame to the pilot of the
freight ship in the same way you would with the moron in the first example? |
Doug
Oct 4
|
| They may get off somewhat, by stating, a 40' tour boat with 50 people aboard
should handle normal wakes found on the lake. And the fact that there is
a normally operating ferry with a large wake, should require the tour boat
to take care for such. |
Bill
Oct 4
|
| Not according to any Admiralty Law I am familiar with.... do you have
any other information.....?
|
Gene
Oct 4
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| The press/media is all over this. Covered by CBS/NBC/ABC evening news, |
trainfan1
Oct 3
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| AND, the other large boats on the lake belong to the same operator... Rob |
trainfan1
Oct 3
|
| And they will be asked about their experience as professional |
Gene
Oct 4
|
| There's no requirement for an adult to wear a life jacket under the Lake
George boating circumstances, but any 90-year-old who goes out on a
small boat certainly should be wearing one. |
Harry
Oct 3
|
| Nope, just when you go in front of a jury, and try to put all the blame on a
big boat with big wake, that you did not see the boat, and that 50 people on
a 40' boat is safe in an area where there is a large ferry operating. The
jury may find the tour operator more negligent. Whatever, there will be
large payouts in the future. |
Bill
Oct 4
|
| Says tour operator and his insurance company and maybe his assets are going
to do all the paying. |
Bill
Oct 4
|
| Also, New York requires at least two crew for any boat carrying more than
21 passengers. One report has the boat with non-fixed chairs. As the
boat listed, everything slid to that side. I'm thinking the swamped
vessel will have a considerable level of negligence by the time this is
over. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4306250.stm |
thunder
Oct 4
|
| Well... that is the news. I have been interviewed often enough to know |
Gene
Oct 3
|
| One would hope that if a wake was a significant factor, the operator
(company) would be held liable, in both criminal and civil actions. A high
profile, multi-million dollar lawsuit, or jail time, would do wonderful
things for safe and courteous operation in the future. But I'm afraid this will be chalked up as an "accident". I have never heard
of an operator actually paying for damage caused by a wake. Is anybody familiar with an operator being held financially or criminally
responsible for his (her) wake? I would love to see a reference or link. Sal's Dad |
Sal's
Oct 3
|
|
Here's the latest report I heard: From the website's description of the report: All Things Considered, October 3, 2005 · Transportation safety officials
have begun searching for clues in the sinking of a tour boat in upstate
New York's Lake George. The Ethan Allen apparently listed suddenly --
possibly caused by the wake of a larger boat -- before it capsized Sunday,
killing 20. Brian Mann from North Country Public Radio reports. There is a link to the audio at this address: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4934507 From the New York State Boater's Guide: [BEGIN QUOTED PORTION] When no speed limit is posted, vessels must always be
operated in such a fashion so as not to endanger others. A
vessel must be able to stop safely within the clear space
ahead. A vessel operator is always responsible for any damage
caused by the vessel’s wake. [END QUOTED PORTION] (Link: http://nysparks.state.ny.us/boating/docs/boaters_guide.pdf) The report I heard on All Things Considered indicates that no boat was
close to the Ethan Allen, but any of us who have been out there know that
wakes can travel a long way, a long time after the boat has passed. In other news, I haven't been posting here much, but I'm still around. My father passed
away in May and I haven't had the boat out all year. And Opera Rocks: I can created nested rules, such as If newsgroup header contains rec.boats
And body of message contains Harry Krause kill file the sucker. Just for an example.
|
FWB
Oct 3
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| I heard about this on the morning news and a big deal was made over no
"criminal" violation..... I read that as "here comes one hell of a
civil lawsuit." Here's a little more current information:
http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=2033952005
|
Gene
Oct 3
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| a couple things: "as he tried to steer out of them".
HUH? out not into? and "because there was no evidence of intoxication"
Opportunities to clear him are now gone. another
investigation gets off on the wrong foot.
....thehick |
frank-in-toron...
Oct 3
|
| A few years ago, my wife and I took our jetskis up to Lake George. We
launched at the south end of the lake and headed north. On the way, we
passed a ferry/day cruise kind of boat. It was close to 200' long with
a whole lotta beam. The wake from that boat was tremendous. I can imagine a fully loaded
boat having a problem negotiating that wake.
John |
John
Oct 3
|
| Initial reports say it was hit by the wake of a larger tour boat. If
this turns out to be true, look for the operator of that larger boat to
pay dearly. |
Curtis
Oct 3
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| Seems excessive. And, why travel that far to see leaves changing color? They
could've headed North in Michigan. |
Doug
Oct 3
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| How could this happen on a calm lake? No waves or wind action at all. Does
anyone have the details? Jim |
Jim
Oct 3
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| My parents had a 47 ft Concord many years ago. If the whole family (2
adults, 2 teens, 1 litle kid) stood on one side, the boat leaned very
slightly. This is conjecture, but 48 people on a 40 ft boat, with unknown
hull design, big wake (maybe) from another boat, and passengers perhaps on
an uppper deck...who knows what might happen? It'll be interesting to see
how this story develops. |
Doug
Oct 3
|
| ===
The accident on Lake George may have occurred when the boat was hit by the
wake of a larger vessel, Warren County Sheriff Larry Cleveland said.
|
*JimH*
Oct 3
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| Here's the boat: http://www.lakegeorgeshoreline.com/boats_ethanallen.html Rob |
trainfan1
Oct 3
|
| You know, although I read that the official capacity of this boat was 50
people, it just doesn't look like it should be rated that high. My boat's official LOA is just over 52' and has a 15' beam. The maximum
number of people I've ever had on it while underway was twenty-one that
included me, Mrs. E. and my brother as crew and, sixteen 10-16 year olds
from a local home for mentally challenged kids, plus two adult chaperones
from the home. We were checked out by the local USCG before getting underway
and escorted by them and the local harbormaster boats during the one hour
cruise. It was a boatfull of people on a 52' boat. I can't imagine having more than double that many people on it while
underway on a boat that is 12 feet smaller. Eisboch |
Eisboch
Oct 3
|
| Eisboch,
Obviously you are correct, or the boat would hot have overturned, but their
is a big difference between your boat and this "cruise boat". This "cruise
boat" is nothing more than rows of seats for the tourist. "Eisboch" <nothere@nowhere.com> wrote in message |
Mr.
Oct 3
|
