A 27-year-old woman and her 5-month-old daughter died after a 22-foot recreational boat capsized near Liberty Island late Saturday. Authorities reported that the survivors were in stable condition. The incident was reported at about 10:25 p.m. in the busy harbor.
Police charged operator Manuel Hernandez, 46, with 13 counts of reckless endangerment. Investigators are examining whether the trip was operating as an unauthorized passenger charter. The Coast Guard opened a marine-casualty investigation into the capsize.
Commercial passenger service can require licenses, inspections and operating rules beyond ordinary recreational boating. Night traffic and currents complicate navigation and rescue near New York Harbor’s channels. Local police and the Coast Guard can examine different legal and safety questions arising from one incident. The number of people aboard will be central to the inquiry because capacity depends on a vessel’s design and operating conditions, not just physical space. The current report did not publish the manufacturer’s capacity plate or an official overload finding.
Authorities had not released a final account of passenger loading, life-jacket use, weather or mechanical condition. The criminal counts are allegations and do not establish guilt. A cause determination normally considers vessel stability, loading, operator decisions, equipment and environmental conditions. An illegal-charter finding would also require evidence that passengers paid for service and that applicable licensing rules were not met. Authorities said they were investigating that possibility rather than announcing a final conclusion.
The reporting available at the edition deadline did not resolve this point: the cause, vessel capacity, charter status and final charging decisions remained under investigation. The next dated records are the Coast Guard’s preliminary findings and prosecutors’ decision after receiving the marine evidence.