I am in some ways surprised nobody mentioned this previously. I am still trying to figure out what all this means and what all occured. Perhaps some of our New Yorkers, i.e. Admin can share his insight on this event. It seems odd, but perhaps it was an accident.

 

 

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Northeast/10/17...dent/index.html

 

 

NTSB: Ferry was going 'full throttle' before crash

Tests on pilot show no alcohol, illegal drugs

 

NEW YORK (CNN) --The Staten Island ferry named the Andrew J. Barberi was going "at full throttle" Wednesday when it crashed into a dock, killing 10, the chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board said Friday.

 

There was no engine or mechanical failure, Ellen Engleman said at a news conference.

 

Toxicology tests on the assistant captain, Richard Smith, were negative for alcohol and illegal drugs, she said. Smith, 55, was piloting the 310-foot ferry at the time of the crash.

 

"We're gratified with the [toxicology] results so far," said Smith's attorney, Alan Abramson.

 

The NTSB has issued a subpoena for additional testing on the pilot for prescription drugs, Engleman said.

 

However, Abramson said he had had no notification of a subpoena for prescription-drugs testing. He said he did not know whether Smith was taking any prescription medication or had any medical condition that would warrant such medication.

 

Smith, who police say attempted suicide after the accident, remains hospitalized in critical condition. Engleman said no date for interviewing him has been set.

 

The captain of the ferry, Michael Gansas, is to be interviewed Tuesday, Engleman said.

 

As Engleman and other investigators looked into the crash, 15 injured remained hospitalized Friday, six of them listed in critical condition.

 

? Seven people were at Staten Island University Hospital, two in critical condition, a hospital spokesman said.

 

? Eight other victims, four in critical condition, were at Saint Vincent's Hospital on Staten Island, a hospital spokesman said, including Smith.

 

In all, 10 people died and 42 were injured in the accident.

 

A spokesman for the city's department of transportation, Tom Cocola, said it was standard procedure for the captain, the assistant captain and a deckhand to be in the 20-by-20-foot wheelhouse while the ship is moving.

 

The assistant captain typically docks the boat on Staten Island, and the captain docks it at the Whitehall terminal on the Manhattan side.

 

The third crew member typically serves as a lookout, Cocola said.

 

In 2000, Smith passed a physical to renew his license, Cocola said.

 

During the 25-minute, five-mile trip, whoever is at the controls normally begins slowing the boat a half-mile -- or five to seven minutes -- before it reaches the dock, he said.

 

Although investigators said it was too early to speculate on a cause of the crash, one city councilman said the pilot collapsed at the controls.

 

New York City Councilman Michael McMahon said Thursday that city officials who briefed him believe Smith had passed out at the vessel's controls, which led to the crash.

 

"The assistant captain who was piloting the ship at the time of the accident collapsed and collapsed onto the controls, and thereby prevented the other captain from getting control of the ship before it crashed," he said.

 

McMahon said there was a "delay in time as to when someone else got in control" and that this would be investigated thoroughly. "It was during that delay that the accident happened," he said.

 

Smith is an 18-year veteran of the ferry service. He started as a deckhand and has spent the past 16 years as a pilot, receiving "outstanding" evaluations over the years. He had held a captain's rank for the past six years.

 

In May, Smith, at his own request, went back to being an assistant captain.

 

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said Thursday that Smith was being treated "as an emotionally disturbed person," and that a police officer was guarding his hospital room.

 

The ferry is one of five that takes passengers to and from the Whitehall Street terminal, at the southern tip of Manhattan, to the St. George ferry terminal on Staten Island.

 

About 65,000 passengers use the free ferry service each day, according to the city's Department of Transportation.

 

CNN's Phil Hirschkorn and Michael Okwu contributed to this report.

i read this in the NYT a few days ago....sad...and scary. If I ever go to NY (hope not), I wont ride the ferry. That is scary.