Lake George Investigations Continue

Investigators are looking at one of the Ethan Allen's sister ships to run tests on whether modifications to the Ethan Allen may have contributed to the ship capsizing. The Ethan Allen apparently was modified with an upgraded engine, which might have affected the center of gravity and weight of the boat.

The NTSB was to perform tests on the Ethan Allen's twin sister boat -- the de Champlain -- in what acting NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker called "a very scientific road test." The NTSB was to perform tests to see how the vessel operated by Shoreline Cruises would have handled at various speeds while carrying its maximum load at an average of 160 pounds per passenger.

The tests aim to show what might happen if such weight suddenly shifted to one side, a possible cause of Sunday's accident on Lake George. NTSB officials loaded the de Champlain with barrels full of water to simulate the weight of the passengers.

Finally, Rosenker said, a "human factor" test would study the actions of the boat's captain, the only crew member aboard, in the 72 hours leading up to the accident.

As for the Ethan Allen, the boat on Wednesday remained inside a Warren County airport hangar, where it was taken after being hauled from the lake Monday night.

The V-shaped hull of the vessel appeared to be structurally intact. Two cracks could be seen in one of the side panels above the hull on the right side -- the side the boat rolled onto when it capsized. Parts of the wood decking also were slightly split.

The rows of green wooden benches, meanwhile, remained bolted to the deck along both sides of the interior. A dozen orange life vests were stacked on some of the benches, and one was stuffed above a raised glass windows.

Of the vessel's 14 windows, three were missing -- one on each side and one from the bow. The boat's hard-top canopy was intact, as were the steering wheel, throttle and gauges.

This article also sheds light into an interesting discussion working its way through the Coast Guard and other transportation agencies - the need to modify weight requirements in light of the American public's expanding waistlines. Since weight may have played an issue in the disaster, changes to the weight limits by the Coast Guard and the State will come under new scrutiny. The USCG treats passenger limits as each one weighing 140 people. The NYS standard is 150 pounds. Fifty people at 150 pounds would mean that the boat was rated to handle a total of 7500 pounds. The USCG limit would mean a rating of only 7000 pounds.

UPDATE:
The NTSB ran tests today that seem to confirm that the Ethan Allen was highly unstable and that may have caused the accident.

A tour boat nearly identical to the one that capsized here, killing 20 elderly tourists, became unstable after weight equivalent to just 10 people was placed at the edge of the vessel, the National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday evening.

Wednesday's stability test found the Ethan Allen unsuited to handle the weight of the 48 adults who were aboard, said Mark Rosenker, acting chairman of the NTSB. He would not say how many passengers the boat could have safely held.

Rosenker also said the Ethan Allen was not appropriately certified for the number of people it carried. He did not elaborate.

During the test of the Ethan Allen's sister vessel, the de Champlain, investigators placed three 55-gallon barrels at the boat's edge, then filled them with water, at which point the boat became unstable. The combined weight of the barrels was just over 1,400 pounds, or the equivalent of 10 adults as defined by Coast Guard weight standards.

I imagine that the families of those who died in this incident will be contacting their lawyers.

Now, investigators will also be examining the wake of the Mohican, a larger cruise boat that is operated by a different cruise company on Lake George. They'll be taking the Mohican out to see what kind of conditions are possible.

Rosenker said investigators also would take the Mohican, a 93-foot tour boat, out on the water. The Ethan Allen's captain initially told investigators he was trying to steer out of a larger vessel's wake when his boat capsized.

Investigators have also taken a urine sample from the Captain, though no tests were taken after the accident occurred over the weekend.

Gov. George Pataki said Wednesday that he will soon propose legislation to make the state's boating-safety standards as tough as existing federal regulations. He said he's specifically looking at the federal requirement for testing a pilot for alcohol and drug use after a fatal crash.

That's going to be the start - state and federal agencies will need to look at the weight requirements.

UPDATE:
Fixed the quote to eliminate extra spacing - bad cut/paste job

Technorati: Lake George, capsize, accident.