09/11/2010 // WPB, FL, USA // Tara Monks // Tara Monks
Philadelphia, PA – The National Transportation Safety Board released a report on Friday, September 10, 2010, stating that the tugboat that struck the Philadelphia amphibious tour boat ignored repeated calls from the boat before it struck it, as reported by the Star-Ledger. The collision between the duck boat and tug boat caused the tour boat to sink, and took the life of two Hungarian tourists.
The NTSB found in the report that the duck boat’s radio calls to the approaching tug went unanswered before the collision on July 7. The crash occurred just south of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, which forms a border between Philadelphia and New Jersey.
There were 35 passengers and two crew members aboard the Ride the Ducks tour boat when it was struck. Passengers were thrown into the river and required the assistance of firefighters, a passing ferry boat and passers-by on shore. The two Hungarians who lost their lives drowned.
The report states drug and alcohol tests for the crews of both vessels were negative. The tugboat mate who was piloting the tug at the time of the collision cited his Fifth Amendment right when asked about the crash, on the advice of his lawyer.
The two tourists, 16-year-old Dora Schwendtner and 20-year-old Szabolcs Prem, were in the states on a church-sponsored exchange program. Their parents have sued the city and the operators of both vessels.
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