Boating under the influence is being blamed for a fatal boating accident in the New York harbor over the weekend. On Friday evening, one man was killed and two other persons on his boat were seriously injured when another boat, allegedly being operated by an intoxicated boater, crashed into the pleasure craft in the New York harbor.
The three men were on a 19 foot Bayliner, and were near the Statue of Liberty when their craft was struck by a Pro-Line vessel. The impact of the crash was massive, and it broke the Bayliner into two. One of the three men aboard was trapped in the wreckage. Rescuers were able to extricate him from the mangled wreck, and he was rushed to the hospital. However, he died of his injuries. The two other men suffered minor injuries including cuts and scrapes.
The operator of the larger boat failed a sobriety test, and was arrested. The other people on the boat with him included a woman and three children. Fortunately, none of them were injured in the accident.
Boating under the influence continues to be a major factor in boating accidents in Texas. It is dangerous for you to be driving under the influence on land. It’s even more dangerous on the water, because your intoxicated boating is worsened by the fact that you have less experience boating than driving. The average American has been a motorist for more numbers of years than he has been a boater. This relative lack of experience on the water means that an intoxicated boater will find it much harder to make emergency decisions that can prevent an accident.
Boating under the influence is a special concern during summer when so many Texans are out on the water for fun. Unfortunately for many of these people, fun involves mixing alcohol with boating which is never a good idea.
The maritime lawyers at Schechter, Shaffer & Harris, L.L.P. represent injured victims of maritime accidents in Texas, across the country and worldwide.
