NEW YORK — A woman and her 5-month-old daughter died after a boat carrying at least 14 people capsized near Liberty Island in New York Harbor late Saturday, while the vessel’s captain was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment, authorities said.
The 22-foot powerboat overturned at about 10:25 p.m. on Aug. 8, according to the New York Police Department and U.S. Coast Guard. Twelve other people were rescued and taken to hospitals for treatment, authorities said.
Police divers found the woman and infant in the water and transported them in critical condition to NYU Langone Hospital in Brooklyn, where they were pronounced dead. Police identified the victims as 27-year-old Sara Sanchez and her daughter, Antonella.
The NYPD said its Harbor Unit, scuba team and aviation unit responded after receiving a 911 call reporting an overturned vessel near Liberty Island, in the area of the Statue of Liberty.
The boat’s captain, Manuel Hernandez, 46, was arrested in the early hours of Sunday and charged with 13 counts of reckless endangerment, the NYPD and Coast Guard said. The charges relate to the surviving passengers, according to authorities.
The circumstances that led to the capsizing remain under investigation. The Coast Guard is also examining whether the vessel was being operated as an unauthorized charter and whether it complied with applicable safety and credentialing requirements, according to the agency.
A nearby sightseeing vessel, Sea the City II, helped rescue the 12 survivors before emergency crews arrived, according to Adam Schwartz, a representative of the company. He said the vessel’s captain and crew members assisted those in the water and coordinated with the Coast Guard and NYPD Harbor units.
“We are extremely grateful for the heroic, swift actions of our partner agencies and Good Samaritan vessel who assisted in rescuing survivors from the water,” Coast Guard Sector New York Commander Captain Doreen McCarthy said, while expressing condolences to the victims’ families.
The Coast Guard defines an illegal charter as a passenger-for-hire operation lacking required credentials, safety equipment or inspection certificates. Investigators have not publicly determined whether that designation applied to the vessel involved in Saturday’s accident.
The investigation by the Coast Guard and NYPD remains ongoing, with authorities examining the vessel’s operation and the events leading to the capsizing.
