Comments on: Lawyer: Alcohol Not Factor in Fatal Boat Crash

By: MikeBayShore

MikeBayShore — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:44:14 +0000

The facts of this event are:

3 Fatals and 4 serious injuries

Limited visibility – nighttime – this happens every day on schedule.

Excessive Speed – vessel was up on the island 150 ft. Speed would have to be in excess of 50 knots. Safe speed would have been 4-6 knots. Safe speed hitting the island would have resulted in a soft grounding without personal injury or vessel damage. In some soft groundings the operator can back off without a tow.

Buoys off station – is common in narrow channels with strong currents and bridge construction. It is the responsibilty of the operator to know where the channel is and how much water the vessel is in. Blaming this on the Town of Hempstead and the U.S. Coast Guard is pathetic.

Experienced boaters are cautious when operating at night. Just because someone has owned a boat for a number of years does not automatically qualify them as safe.

Now comes the .08 Blood Alchohol level. Impaired or Drunk, doesn’t improve your judgement and boat operating skills, period.

Our boating public has shrunk the past 3 years to the point of removing some of the thrill seakers from boating. There are many performance boat owners who would never have done the above, regardless of their years of experience. I personally dont like the sound of open exhaust but I do know several performance boaters who are prudent in their choices.

It is so remarkable how trial lawyers attempt to remove or place responsibility where it does not belong. Makes good Adv and PR for them as they circle around the tragedy.

The fact remains that the vessel operator in this case was responsible.

MikeBayShore
U.S. Coast Guard Licensed Master

By: Rocky

Rocky — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:11:07 +0000

I totally agreee with Private Citizen. The cause of this crash is poor or impaired judgement, and it doesn’t take much alcohol to affect that.

By: sam sung

sam sung — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:25:43 +0000

Why is it someone makes a mistake and breaks the law (DUI) and the lawyers are ready to blame everyone else to avoid a payout. Thanks for making my boating insurane rates escalate each year. If you don’t operate you vessel with safety and common sense than you liable for you own actions, what happened to the report of a wittness noting that he dorve under the “closed” Wantagh bridge under power just minutes beforehand, was that his years of experinece showing his good boating skills also? the drinking law is not new, so abide by it or dont drive… prettty simple I would say

By: Private Citizen

Private Citizen — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:05:42 +0000

Pardon me but exactly how fast was this “experienced” boater going when he plowed into the marsh and killed all of those people? Drunk or not, an “experienced” boater who no doubt should have known that channel; would have responsibly slowed tha boat and piloted in a safe manner.

This sounds a bit too much like some company trying to avoid paying. Too bad that we now allow lawyers and insurance companies to rule our lives.

By: ButcherBill

ButcherBill — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:24:06 +0000

Please….. stop with the DWI farce money making machine….. .08 is equal two 2 beers at dinner……
It wouldn’t of been that the buoys were missing would it???….nah….that wouldn’t generate revenue for the scum politicians and the members of the PBA