Video captures deadly tugboat sinking

Dramatic cellphone video captured the sinking of a tugboat in the Hudson River that killed three crew members last month. The video, recorded from a stationary barge, was provided to Newsday by James

News 12 Staff

Apr 6, 2016, 12:32 AM

Updated 3,307 days ago

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Dramatic cellphone video captured the sinking of a tugboat in the Hudson River that killed three crew members last month.
The video, recorded from a stationary barge, was provided to Newsday by James Forde, the attorney for The Specialist's captain, Paul Amon, one of the three tugboat crewman who died in the accident.
The video shows how quickly the 84-foot tugboat sank. A worker on the barge can be overheard gasping, "The poor guy is inside, man."
The Specialist was one of three tugboats escorting a barge down the Hudson River when it struck the corner of a stationary barge on March 12. Amon, who was piloting the vessel when it crashed, was killed along with Timothy Conklin, 29, of Westbury, and Harry Hernandez, 56, of Staten Island.
According to Forde, witnesses said Amon could have saved himself if he had jumped off the tugboat immediately after it crashed. Instead, Amon rushed to alert Hernandez, who was inside the tugboat.
Amon was the first person pulled from the water, while Conklin was later found dead inside the vessel. Hernandez's body and the tugboat were recovered from 40 feet below the surface 12 days later. The crash also left behind several thousands of gallons of fuel in the Hudson River.
The Specialist was taken by the Coast Guard to Newark, New Jersey, where the investigation continues.