N.Y. ferry crash no crime scene

UPDATED:

NEW YORK | The investigation into a Staten Island ferry that slammed into a pier over the weekend has turned up no evidence of a crime, according to a federal official, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday indications pointed to mechanical failure.

“At this point in the investigation, we have no reason to believe this was a criminal or intentional act,” National Transportation Safety Board member Robert Sumwalt said in an e-mail Monday to the Associated Press.

The ferry’s assistant captain, Maqbool Ahmed, was piloting the Andrew J. Barberi, with the captain nearby in the bridge, when it crashed at Staten Island’s St. George Ferry Terminal on Saturday, injuring about three dozen people, city Department of Transportation spokesman Seth Solomonow said Monday.

NTSB investigators were interviewing Mr. Ahmed and some of the approximately 18 crew members. They also were expected to talk to some of the 252 passengers who were aboard the ill-fated trip.

Mr. Bloomberg said that Mr. Ahmed and the captain were next to each other at the time of the crash and that, similar to co-pilots on airplanes, they took turns being at the helm on different segments of the ferry ride to make sure each gained experience in the position.

“I think everybody’s so far convinced that this was a mechanical problem,” Mr. Bloomberg said.

Based on an initial interview with the ferry’s chief engineer, “All conditions concerning the engines were normal prior to the accident,” Mr. Sumwalt said Sunday.

The engineer, who was in the ferry’s engine control room, said there were no engine alarms before the accident, Mr. Sumwalt said. There also were no previous problems with the propulsion system or electrical systems, he said.

At a press conference Monday, Mr. Sumwalt said there was no indication anyone cut power to the ferry’s engines. He said video footage of the bridge showed the crew was applying proper procedures to slow the vessel and didn’t appear to be distracted.

There were four people on the bridge during the accident, the captain, assistant captain, mate and deck hand, Mr. Sumwalt said. It was apparent to them that the vessel did not show signs that it was slowing down as it approached the dock and that it was coming in faster than normal, he said.