Archive for the ‘Passenger Injury Death Claims’ Category

28 year old, Yasuki Okada of Princeton New Jersey died on a New Jersey diving excursion over the weekend.  Ms. Okada was about 15 miles off the coast of Shark River when she failed to resurface from her dive off of the dive boat Gypsy Blood.  The Gypsy Blood is a dive charter operation based in Brielle, New Jersey. 

The crew of the Gypsy Blood contacted the Coast Guard and found the woman under water about 35 minutes into her 122 foot dive.  She received CPR and was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune where she was pronounced dead from the injuries sustained in this New Jersey maritime accident.

The cause of this fatal diving accident remains under investigation.

Last week we wrote about the fatal Philadelphia duck boat tragedy and the role that the barge played in that accident.  Today, we want to focus on the role of the tug boat. 

The barge that hit the amphibious vehicle and caused it to sink, throwing all 37 people aboard into the water and killing two students, was being transported by a tugboat. 

While the barge was unmanned, the tugboat had a crew aboard guiding operations.  On Saturday the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) interviewed the tugboat’s captain, first mate and three crewmembers.  A spokesperson for the NTSB said that investigators would be asking the tugboat captain and crew about their procedures, about what they saw, and about what they didn’t see, in the time leading up to the July 7 accident.

Likely, the NTSB investigators are going to want to know where the captain was at the time of the accident and what he was doing, if a lookout was appointed and performing his duties, and if the crew was properly monitoring channels for information about safety and emergencies.

Tugboats perform important maritime duties.  However, like all vessels, they must take proper precautions to protect the safety of their own crew and those in other vessels.

Yesterday, a group of Philadelphia tourists had an afternoon of peaceful sightseeing turned into a nightmare situation.  The tourists were aboard an amphibious vehicle known as a “duck boat.”  The vehicle tours the city both on land and in the water. 

When the duck boat entered the Delaware River yesterday, it started to experience some mechanical problems and a small fire.  It was waiting for help.

However, before help could arrive a barge hit the boat causing it to tip over and forcing all 37 people aboard into the water.  The barge, which is owned by the city of Philadelphia, was carrying sludge and was being directed by a tug boat. 

At least 10 people were taken to Hahnemann Hospital with injuries. 2 people remained missing this morning and it currently unknown whether they survived this Pennsylvania maritime accident.  Their identities have not yet been released but reports indicate that the missing people include a 16 year old girl and a 20 year old man who were part of a Hungarian tour group.  Rescuers searched through the night for the 2 missing persons and continue their search this morning, though hope is fading that they have survived the accident.

A thorough investigation that is likely to involve many government agencies as well as several private businesses is just in the beginning stages.  The duck boat sank to the bottom of the river and officials plan to recover the vehicle as part of the investigation.