The National Transportation Safety Board released its preliminary findings regarding
the ferry that crashed into a Manhattan
pier. According to the report, the ferry
“departed Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, at 0802 with 326 passengers and five crewmembers
(including the master) on board.” The
ferry approached Pier 11 and the master reduced the speed and prepared for
docking the vessel.
“To obtain better visibility of the dock and his crew handling lines, the [captain] transferred propulsion control from the vessel’s center console operating station to the starboard bridge wing station, about 10 feet away.” According to the captain, “he then walked over to the starboard console and attempted to take control there, but that the thrust controls did not respond.” The thrust controls were not responding on either the starboard console or the center console. According to the captain, there was no time to signal to the passengers that the ferry was going to crash. The report indicates that the captain “told investigators that the event happened quickly and that he did not have time to issue a warning to the passengers over the onboard public address system or sound the danger signal.” The report tallies the number of passengers injured at eighty-three and one passenger was seriously injured.
In addition to the preliminary report, investigators have retrieved data from the ferry engines and closed-circuit camera system. They are still testing the ferry’s propulsion system. Last week, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also surveyed the approach to Pier 11, but no findings have been released.
The full preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is located here.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/25/3200815/ntsb-nj-ferry-crisis-left-no-time.html#storylink=cpy
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