Wife Tries To Abort And Poison Husband's Lovechild
Man Injured By Tree Limb Files Suit Against City
Charles Barron Will Run For Council Speaker
Alleged Tiger Mistress Is Unrecognizable To Dead Fiancee's Dad
New Jersey State Senate To Vote On Gay Marriage
A 17-foot motorboat called "Bite Me" was capsized by the wake of a passing tugboat yesterday afternoon and a group of six people were thrown into the water. The boat's owner was taking a friend and his family, including his wife, two daughters and a nephew, for a cruise around the Statue of Liberty. On the return trip, their boat was swamped by the passing tug and all six people were in the water for about ten minutes until a passing yachtsman came to their aid. One witness was unimpressed by other boaters' behavior. "Private boats kept passing and no one stopped to help. 'It really shows what New Yorkers are made of,' said witness Jack Eisenkeit, 59."
Hell Gate is the tidal strait where the East River joins the westernmost end of the Long Island Sound and is located between Randall's Island and Astoria Queens. When the tide is turning, the current in the river is intimidating looking; we've seen the water churn like rapids. The name Hell Gate is a corruption, or anglicization of the Dutch name Hellegat, meaning "bright passage."
(hell's gate and boat, by thrownoutawindow at flickr)
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Hell Gate is actually a very dangerous place, especially if you are a slower boat (like a sailboat). The have been many sinking's there due to the tidal currents. I have personally seen small whirlpools and 3-4 foot chop on otherwise calm days. If you are on a slow boat, against the current you can really be spun around. There are rumors that there is gold bullion on a sunken vessel in Hell Gate but that the currents are too strong for diver's to get to it.
As an avid and regular paddler of the waters all around the southern sectioon of the South, South Bronx and Randall's Island I can state for the record that tales of Hell's gate area are greatly exaggerated. The real dangers, as indicated in the article itself, are the wakes from passing vessels of every size and the decorum and etghics of the waterways that are not adhered to by new part-time boaters. For safety in the area No Wake regulations need to be enforced and expanded, especially on the adjacent Harlem River. In short: hand powered craft=safe; motorozed vessles, watch out.