hudson river crash

Wouldn't be the first time. Barges at night are hard to see, even WITH the required lights.
 
It was on FOX the night it happened. Still have not recovered bodies yet as far as FOX is reporting.
 
http://boatered.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=162187
 
http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2013/07/driver_of_speedboat_charged_wi.html
 
After all the reports of acccidents with injuries and deaths and commercials and educational programs against BWI and DWI, I can't understand how or why anyone who's been drinking would get behind the wheel of a car or boat. I also can't understand how any of his/her family or friends would get into the car or boat with a driver who's been drinking. I don't know if the charges will stick since he was driving a boat rather than a car or truck. I hope they do. If they don't because it's the Coast Guard's or NYS State's jurisdiction, rather than the city's, I hope new charges are filed against the driver/pilot. Because of him, two people are dead, four are seriously injured, and two families are destroyed, one having to plan a funeral instead of their daughter's wedding. Hy
 
And the driver apparently was from Nyack to boot!! He should know better than anyone about the barges etc.around the TZ bridge. I personally go past there slower than ever now even in broad daylight because there is so much going on with the new bridge construction and I don't want to come upon something that used not to be there!!

To read people questioning the barges proper lighting aggravates me because if you have been drinking,

operating a boat at night, probably going to fast and not having a proper look out, there is no adequate lighting for reckless!!

They should have been traveling at pretty close to no wake speed with everyone paying attention to where they were and where they were going...and sober!!

I would bet when it all comes out all of them had been drinking and they were probably all partying and fooling around. One person was charged but there was probably plenty of blame to go around.

Now there are young lives lost and so many changed forever. It's heartbreaking and boater safety course as some in the news have mentioned, would not have changed anything. You can't fix stupid!
 
"boater safety course as some in the news have mentioned, would not have changed anything"

Probably so. Still, in Boating Safety, we tell students that alcohol "hits harder" on the water than on land. CG actually ran a study that proved that. Same amount of alcohol made people stupider (or more stupid, which is the word?) afloat than ashore.

We try to get people to think.
 
They will think....in class!
But when the Booze comes out, the bravado comes out with it.
Big question for all of us is what to do about these kinds of incidents.
You cannot charge the guy with Murder.
He cannot make Restitution for a death.
Society needs the Perp's contribution to our Capitalistic Republic.

If (he et al) don't listen to his Integrity, we just have to wait for the Incident to happen and hope for the best.

Keeping this incident in the papers and TV for a long loud time might reach some people.
 
j-d, I'm a 12 year member of the USCGA. I'm a huge supporter of mandatory boating safety courses. But I know from a lifetime of boating experience on NY and NJ waters, they will make good boaters better but they will do nothing for those prone to making bad choices. My favorite time of day to boat is dusk to evening. Been out on that river more times than I can count under a full moon (good visibility) to no moon or cloudy(minimal visibility).
I have traveled at a crawl if that is what it took to stay safe. Never have I come even close to hitting something, people out at the same time are another story.

A night in a bar or some drinks on the boat often take a person prone to rather reckless decisions and turn them deadly. I'm not saying that is what happened here, but this boat hit a barge head on!!! It was right in front of them. It's incredible that they drove right into it. SO many things had to have gone wrong for that to happen. Alcohol at the top of the list.
 
Wife and I have been in AUX 46 years and I'm currently our flotilla's PE staff officer. Like the country song - A Few Drinks and I'm Bulletproof - Till something happens.

Do you happen to remember the Palm Valley FL (on ICW south of St. Johns River on the way to St. Augustine) Easter Sunday 2009? Happened within 6 miles of my home, in an area we patrol. 14 people in a 21-footer, broadsided a construction tug at speed. Busted into the steel side of the tug cabin. 5 killed, others badly injured. We've run south, past that spot, turned around a mile beyond, and come back to find a jetski collision. Woman with a broken leg.

You mention NJ waters. NJ has documented a reduction in the accident rate. They attribute it to their "Rapid Implementation" where they took in 5 years of birthdays every year unlike FL which takes in 1. With more and faster boats, it might be hard to see any improvement, but the stats say it's there.
 
Mandatory boater education and testing cannot be a bad thing. It won't cure all problems any more than mandatory driver education and testing does, but it will be a change for the better.
 
At first I thought they couldn't be locals because anyone know those barges are there, also not so deep water. I hear the boat came out from Piermont which is about 1/2 a mile or so from where the barges are parked. Also supposedly the barges have lights on them at night time but I have never seen any. I bet they do have lights now.

What a disaster!
 
quote:
Originally posted by littlebookworm

After all the reports of acccidents with injuries and deaths and commercials and educational programs against BWI and DWI, I can't understand how or why anyone who's been drinking would get behind the wheel of a car or boat. I also can't understand how any of his/her family or friends would get into the car or boat with a driver who's been drinking. I don't know if the charges will stick since he was driving a boat rather than a car or truck. I hope they do. If they don't because it's the Coast Guard's or NYS State's jurisdiction, rather than the city's, I hope new charges are filed against the driver/pilot. Because of him, two people are dead, four are seriously injured, and two families are destroyed, one having to plan a funeral instead of their daughter's wedding. Hy

Click to expand...

I think the violation is Federal because it was on the water. I don't think the "captain" is getting out of this so easy.
 
Education doesn't change attitudes when people become drunk. Guys get beer b&lls or beer muscles.
We have had mandatory boaters education and carrying the boaters safety card for years here in NJ, I don't believe it has caused a reduction in accidents I think you can thank that to less people boating for a variety of reasons none being the education requirement or learning much more then the penalties for various violations.
Bill
 
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