Deadly Hudson River capsizing renews scrutiny of illegal charter boats
Capt. Manuel Hernandez is in federal custody. The Coast Guard is investigating whether or not he was operating an illegal boat charter along the Hudson River.
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Was a 22-foot boat carrying 14 people, weighed down with too many people, when it capsized, killing a mother and child on board? That’s one of the questions the Coast Guard will try to answer as the investigation continues into Capt. Manuel Hernandez and how the 22-foot Bayliner turned over on the Hudson River.
Hernandez was initially charged with 13 counts of reckless endangerment but could be facing more severe charges after being taken into federal custody.
The Coast Guard will determine if he was operating an illegal charter, which is one that doesn’t have proper certification, safety equipment, and is carrying more than six passengers.
Capt. Mike Zlotowicz operates Zenith Yacht Charters out of Newport Marina. He sees these illegal charters every day in New York Harbor. He explained why he reports them to the Coast Guard.
"We see them loading too many people. We see them out there in the waves, in the current in the traffic with too many people," said Cpt. Zlotowicz.
His charter company and others in New Jersey have continually called on the Coast Guard to increase regulation of illegal charters.
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"We're out there because we don’t want our industry all painted and tarnished with the same brush after one clown kills people. We don’t want to be associated with that," said Zlotowicz.
If a boat owner does not have Coast Guard certification, Zlotowicz says that owner can't legally take more than 6 passengers. He adds that some of the illegal charters are also circumventing rules about certification by hiring out a vessel to a customer and then separately offering a boat captain for hire.
In 2022, there was a nearly identical crash in New York Harbor. A mother and child were killed while on board an overcrowded boat operated by an unlicensed charter. In that case, the operator also faced federal charges.
As for this incident on Saturday night in which a mother and child died, Zlotowicz says, "Somebody took that child's life in their hands and did not take that responsibility seriously and that hurts us all."
“We’re out there because we don’t want our industry all painted and tarnished with the same brush that one clown kills people. We don’t want to be associated with that.”
Zlotowicz says there was a nearly identical incident in 2022. In that case, an unlicensed charter boat capsized, killing two people. The operator pleaded guilty to federal charges.
