(Lake George, New York) Dozens of senior citizens were onboard a 40-foot Shoreline Cruises tour boat when it flipped over on Lake George, about 50 miles north of Albany. The weather was clear, with the temperature in the 70s. Eyewitnesses say the glass-enclosed boat sank.
From PostStar.com:
Nineteen people were killed in a tour boat accident on Lake George today, according to Warren County Sheriff Larry Cleveland.The Glens Falls hospital declared a Code Yellow disaster alert to handle the injured. As of 5pm EDT, all passengers had been accounted for.
The Ethan Allen, a small cruise boat on the lake, was carrying 47 passengers this afternoon when the accident happened about 3 p.m. today.
According to Cleveland, the wake from the Mohican, a boat owned by Lake George Steamboat Company, swamped and flipped the glass-enclosed Ethan Allen.
[Update 2030EDT]
Twenty-one people are now listed as having died when the boat sank in approximately 70 feet of water. The only crew member onboard, Captain Richard Paris, survived. The estimated number of passengers was increased to 49 and it's reported that none pulled from the water were wearing life vests. Also, since those onboard were senior citizens, a number were in wheelchairs or required walkers.
The incident occurred about 200 yards from shore. An unconfirmed report states that it capsized after it hit the wake of a larger cruise boat.
[Update 02/23/06]
It appears that there was no liability insurance to cover the costs of the tragedy.
[Update 6/24/08]
From Daily Gazette:
ALBANY -- A court settlement has been reached with a tour boat operator on behalf of nine survivors and 20 tourists killed when their boat overturned on an Adirondack lake in 2005.Hopefully the terms kept confidential included lots of zeroes before the decimal point.
The settlement ends claims against Shoreline Cruises Inc., its affiliate Quirks Marine Rentals and boat captain Richard Paris, according to lawyers and court documents. The terms of the deal are confidential. Claims continue against the tour operator, a boat builder and another company whose tour boat’s wake was suspected of contributing to the accident.
The 40-foot Ethan Allen carried 47 passengers and the captain when it suddenly tipped over in clear, sunny weather on Oct. 2, 2005, sending screaming tourists into Lake George. Nineteen of those killed were from Michigan and one was from Ohio.
“Under the circumstances we’re satisfied with the settlement and we’re going to continue to press forward against the other parties,” James Hacker, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, said Tuesday.
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