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Baby, woman die after boat overturns near Statue of Liberty; Man charged in incident
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Aug 9, 2026
Modified Aug 9, 2026
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By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Aug 9, 2026
Modified Aug 9, 2026
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A Manhattan man has been charged with 13 counts of reckless endangerment related to a Saturday night boat capsizing in New York Harbor which killed a 5-month-old girl and her 27-year-old mother.
Police and the Coast Guard say the incident with the 22-foot bowrider occurred at 10:25 p.m. near the Statue of Liberty. NYPD, FDNY and Coast Guard vessels responded, along with a police helicopter.
The mother and daughter have been identified by the NYPD as Queens residents Sara Sanchez and Antonella Garcia, respectively.
They were recovered from the water by NYPD divers and taken to NYU Langone Hospital in Brooklyn in critical condition, where they were later pronounced dead. A dozen other people were rescued from the water and are in stable condition, according to the Coast Guard.
Manuel Hernandez, a 46-year-old Midtown resident, was arrested and charged just before 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning. Police say he was the captain of the boat, and that the incident did not involve any other boats. It is unclear how Hernandez was related to the victims.
The investigation remains ongoing. The Coast Guard is specifically looking into whether or not Hernandez was operating an illegal charter.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
Tagged
new york harbor
nypd
safety
Michael Sol Warren
Michael Sol Warren covers New Jersey for WNYC and Gothamist, and previously reported on issues around the Garden State for NJ Spotlight News and NJ Advance Media. He can be reached at [email protected].
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