A boat capsized near Liberty Island in New York Harbor on Saturday night, killing a 27-year-old woman and a 5-month-old baby and sending 11 other people to area hospitals with minor injuries. Police identified the captain as 46-year-old Manuel Hernandez, who was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment on Sunday morning.
The wreck happened in one of New York’s most recognizable stretches of water, beside the home of the Statue of Liberty, and quickly became more than a rescue story. The New York City Police Department said the woman and infant were taken to NYU Langone Health Brooklyn in critical condition before they were pronounced dead there. The vessel was later towed to shore and remains in police custody, a sign that investigators now have the boat itself as part of the case.
What has not yet been pinned down is why the boat overturned. The U.S. Coast Guard said it is coordinating with New York police to determine whether the trip was an illegal charter operation, a question that hangs over the arrest and the deaths. That distinction matters because a charter operation would help define who was responsible for putting the boat on the water and under what rules.
Liberty Island sits on the New Jersey side of New York Harbor and is best known as the long-time home of the Statue of Liberty, which has been there since President Grover Cleveland dedicated it in 1886. For the people pulled from the water, the night ended with rescue. For investigators, it ended with a boat, a charge, and a still-open question about whether the voyage should have been happening at all.
