Lawyer: Boat not necessarily overloaded

• Tweet

OYSTER BAY, N.Y., July 7 (UPI) -- An attorney for the owner of a cabin cruiser that capsized Wednesday off Long Island, N.Y., killing three children, said the boat wasn't necessarily overloaded.

James Mercante, the attorney for owner Kevin M. Treanor, whose 11-year-old daughter, Harlie, was among the children who died, said combined wakes of passing boats could have led to the 34-foot boat capsizing, The New York Times reported.

The boat, carrying 27 passengers, capsized after a fireworks display near Oyster Bay. The three children were trapped in the submerged cabin. Also killed were Treanor's 12-year-old nephew, David Aureliano, and Victoria Gaines, the 8-year-old daughter of family friends.

The Times said boaters and boating safety experts had cited the number of passengers as the probable cause for the capsizing.

"They were out there for hours before, during and after the fireworks and there was no incident, no problem; the vessel handled fine," said Mercante, who spoke with Treanor and the Nassau County police investigating the accident. "You get two or three big boats when they're together, you get a wake becoming 6 to 8 feet. Any boat could get rolled over with a trough like that."

Nassau police officer James Imperiale said an investigation could lead to criminal charges.

No federal regulations govern capacity for a boat like the one that sank, a 34-foot Silverton called the Kandi Won.

The Times said boating-safety organizations, including the United States Power Squadrons, provide a guideline determined by multiplying the boat's length by its width and dividing by 15. For the Kandi Won, that would be a capacity of 27.