The boat capsized in New York Harbor near Liberty Island, where the statue of the same name is located. A 27-year-old woman and a five-month-old girl were killed, and 12 other people were injured, ABC News reports.
Emergency services received a report of a capsized boat at around 10:30pm on Saturday. New York Police Department divers and city fire department personnel were sent to the scene. A helicopter and water transport were involved in the rescue operation, writes The New York Times.
Divers found a woman and baby in critical condition in the water. They were taken to NYU Langone Hospital in Brooklyn, where doctors later pronounced them dead. The names of the victims have not yet been disclosed. The publication amNY, citing the police, reports that we are talking about a mother and daughter.
Another 12 people were pulled out of the water before emergency services arrived. They received non-life-threatening injuries. The victims were also taken to hospitals in New York.
Photos published by the New York Post showed some passengers from the capsized boat being carried away on stretchers, while others disembarked from the rescue boat on their own after returning to shore. The photographs also show police and emergency services personnel.
The police are establishing the circumstances of the incident. The US Coast Guard told CNN that investigators plan to interview the boat's captain as part of the investigation. A short time later, 46-year-old Manuel Hernandez was arrested on 13 charges of reckless endangerment.
According to a Fox News source, the incident occurred on a 22-foot (about 6.7 m) bowrider-type pleasure motor boat.
