As an unlicensed boat operator faces federal charges from a weekend tragedy in New York Harbor, the first accounts from other passengers about what happened are coming out — including one woman who said she held the 5-month-old baby girl just moments before she and her mother died in the accident.
“It was a celebration and it ended in tragedy,” said Elizabeth Vélez, who survived Saturday night’s incident near the Statue of Liberty.
The ride on the 22-foot speedboat was supposed to be a joyful outing for the group of 13 who go to same church and were celebrating a birthday.
“We celebrated, we sang happy birthday to the person, and well, it was very, very nice,” said Vélez.
Part of the problem: There were 14 people (including the operator) aboard a vessel that had a capacity of 10. Among the passengers was 27-year-old Sara Sanchez and her 5-month-old daughter, Antonella Garcia.
“She was a very happy girl. She didn’t cry the whole way,” said Vélez.
The boat tour, which began at 7 p.m., was more than three hours into its journey when Manuel Hernandez was piloting the boat toward the Statue of Liberty and made a U-turn that brought it into a swell, possibly caused by a larger passing vessel’s wake, according to the criminal complaint. Hernandez tried to accelerate to pass through the swell, but the swell swamped the bow of his boat and immediately capsized it, prosecutors said.
Vélez told NBC New York the boat did not seem to be speeding, nor did it appear that wearing a life jacket was mandatory.
“That current came and it was strong,” said Vélez. “I closed my eyes and there was no time for anything. It was like, in a second, I don’t know. When I opened my eyes, I was underneath.”
In seemingly an instant, Vélez said all 14 people aboard were underwater, and they could see nothing but darkness. When she finally made it back above water, Vélez said most of the group has surfaced except for her friend, Sanchez.
Vélez said she had been holding the infant just moments before the boat capsized, as her mom fitted her in a life jacket.
Prosecutors on Monday alleged Hernandez knowingly operated the boat with an infant on board, without ensuring that the child was wearing a life vest and with the awareness that the boat didn’t have any child- or infant-sized life vests. Hernandez told the mother to wear a life jacket and to hold the baby the entire tour.
Twelve others on board were rescued, authorities said, including the 29-year-old husband and father of the victims. His co-workers at the Marco Hotel in Queens and at Il Punto Ristorante were devastated over his loss.
“Nobody should be going through this, especially Andres. All he wanted to do was have a family and live the dream, as anybody else wanted to do,” said Santina Wiggins, the assistant general manager of the hotel.
Antonio Russo, general manager at Il Punto Ristorante, said Garcia is an “amazing guy” who has been working long hours each week as a waiter, driver and food-runner to provide for his family here and in Colombia.
A crowdfunding campaign that began Sunday to help Andres Garcia — who lost his wife and daughter — pay for the funeral and other expenses had topped $25,000 by Monday afternoon.
Diego Naranjo, a neighbor of Sanchez in Queens, said he first met her last spring when her son threw a ball into their backyard. After recovering the ball, Naranjo invited her son to play on a trampoline with his children.
“They were really nice people. You can see when a person is noble,” Naranjo said.
He said he last saw Sanchez last Tuesday as she brought groceries into her home. He said he was shocked by the deaths.
The vessel was pulled from the water and taken to the New York Police Department’s harbor unit facility on Randall’s Island. Hernandez had borrowed the boat from a friend on Saturday because his own vessel needed repairs. He didn’t tell the friend that he was using it for a charter tour, prosecutors wrote.
Hernandez was charged with two counts of misconduct and neglect of a ship officer resulting in death. He was not required to enter a plea and was released on $50,000 bail.
As Hernandez left the hearing, his court-appointed attorney, Amy Gallicchio, guided him to a waiting vehicle. Both declined to comment. If convicted on both charges, Hernandez faces up to 20 years in prison.
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