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Tour boat capsizes in cave along the erie canal in upstate new york, leaving one dead.

A tour boat capsized in an underground cave along the Erie Canal in upstate New York on Monday, leaving one person dead and sending nearly a dozen others to the hospital, officials said.

A total of 28 visitors from a tour group and one staff member were aboard a boat operated by the Lockport Cave and Underground Boat Ride when it became unbalanced and flipped over, throwing everyone into the water, according to Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano.

A 60-year-old man was stuck under the capsized boat and died, Quagliano said at a news conference Monday. Sixteen people were rescued by emergency crews while others were able to navigate out of the water safely, he added.

He said when crews arrived, the boat was upside down and some people were on top of the vessel.

Eleven people were taken to hospitals for non-life threatening injuries, including a broken arm and a possible head injury, Quagliano said. He noted the boat, a flat-bottom pontoon, could safely hold 40 people and no one had on a life jacket at the time the vessel capsized, though he said he was unsure whether wearing one was required.

The boat was touring the Lockport cave, police said. Located about 20 miles east of Niagara Falls near the US-Canada border, the Lockport Cave and Underground Boat Ride takes people along the Erie Canal through an underground cave.

“Embark on one of America’s longest underground boat rides along the Erie Canal and experience a trip of wonders,” its website states . “Visitors are awestruck as they take a ride that has been described as both ‘peaceful and eerie’ as the boat glides through the lifeless water, illuminated only by small, sporadically placed electric lights.”

The tour was part of a free “familiarization tour” that Destination Niagara USA hosts every year for hospitality employees from the county, said Andrea Czopp, Chief Operating Officer of the group.

The cave maintains a temperature of 55 degrees year-round . The water is about 5 to 5-and-a-half feet deep, with some areas as deep as 6 feet, Quagliano said.

The cave tour has been in operation since the mid-1970s without incident, Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said.

The cave is just one small section of the Erie Canal , the 1825 landmark work of civil engineering creating a waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes.

Lockport Police Chief Steven Abbott said authorities are treating the area as a crime scene for now as their investigation continues.

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1 person dead after tour boat capsizes inside cave along the Erie Canal

By Emily Mae Czachor

Updated on: June 12, 2023 / 7:43 PM EDT / CBS News

A tour boat capsized Monday morning in a cave along the Erie Canal in Upstate New York, authorities said. One person died after being trapped beneath the boat for at least an hour.

Fire officials and emergency medical personnel rescued 16 people from the water. Authorities said there were 28 people on board the boat when it capsized before 11:30 a.m. The rest of the passengers were able to emerge safely out of the cave.

The tour was carrying passengers and one staff member from Destination Niagara through a series of caves in a section of the Erie Canal in Lockport, near Niagara Falls at the U.S.-Canadian border. 

The capsize happened during a stretch of the underground trip where tourists board a small boat and travel along a 300-foot channel inside the cave, where the water level hovers around five feet deep, although it exceeds six feet in some areas, authorities said at a news conference Monday afternoon. 

Authorities said the boat, which can carry as many as 40 people, became unstable and flipped near the end of the channel. The passenger who was killed was about 60 years old, authorities said.

Of the 16 people rescued by crews, 11 were injured and transported to a hospital for treatment. Officials said a broken arm and a possible head injury were recorded, although some passengers could have potentially suffered from hypothermia after being in the water for 15 or 20 minutes. The water temperature at the time was between 55 degrees and 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Lockport Police Department originally confirmed the incident in a  statement  shared to its Facebook page about an hour after it happened.

"Lockport police and fire departments, as well as several other agencies, are currently working to assist parties that were on a boat that capsized in the Lockport Cave Tours," police said in the statement.

Streets in the surrounding area were closed off to give rescue crews easier access to the scene, according to Lockport police. An investigation into the incident is ongoing, and authorities said the area where the boat capsized will be considered a crime scene until their probe is complete.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a tweet that authorities with the New York State Police, Division of Homeland Security, State Parks and Health Department were at the scene and assisting local officials in their response.

"My team is in close contact with local officials and emergency operations teams who have responded to a capsized boat along the Erie Canal in Lockport," the tweet read.

My team is in close contact with local officials and emergency operations teams who have responded to a capsized boat along the Erie Canal in Lockport. @nyspolice , @NYSDHSES , @NYstateparks , and @HealthNYGov are on site to assist local officials in the response. — Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) June 12, 2023

CBS affiliate WIVB  shared an image to Twitter that appeared to show authorities loading adults, wearing towels, onto stretchers along a roadway near the canal. 

The sheriff tells me no children were on the boat. Around 30 adults were on the boat that capsized. @news4buffalo https://t.co/IqTze5mi3k — Jeff Preval (@JeffPrevalTV) June 12, 2023

As WIVB reported, boat tours have taken place inside the Erie Canal's network of caves since 1977, while the caves themselves were created in the late 19th century. Authorities said Monday that the Lockport Cave Tours have proceeded without incident since they began more than four decades ago.

• Niagara Falls

Emily Mae Czachor is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. She covers breaking news, often focusing on crime and extreme weather. Emily Mae has previously written for outlets including the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed and Newsweek.

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1 person dead after boat capsizes in cave along Erie Canal in New York

A tour boat capsized in a cave along the Erie Canal in western New York state Monday, sending several passengers into the water and killing a man, authorities said.

Lockport police officers and firefighters rushed to Lockport Cave & Underground Boat Ride and pulled people out of the water after the first calls for help came in about 11:30 a.m., officials said.

A passenger was trapped under the vessel after it went bottom-up and was declared dead once he was pulled from the water, the Lockport Fire Department said in a statement. The man was not immediately publicly identified pending notification of his wife, officials said.

“The boat did a 180-degree turn, so the bottom of the boat was upright in the water,” Fire Chief Luca Quagliano told reporters. “A number of victims were on top of that boat initially when rescuers got to them.”

First responders pulled 16 people from the water, 11 of whom were taken to hospitals for minor injuries and hypothermia, the fire department said, echoing a preliminary narrative offered earlier by Lockport Police Chief Steven Abbott.

Twelve other passengers were tall enough to walk through the water while breathing and reach safety, the fire department said. Rescuers used an inflatable boat and breached a cave wall to reach riders from different directions, it said.

A city police officer who entered the water to help passengers was later taken to a hospital to be evaluated for possible hypothermia, the fire department said.

A firefighter sustained a minor, unspecified injury but remained on duty, it said.

The people in the boat were hospitality and travel professionals in the area on a “familiarization tour,” guests of Destination Niagara USA, which promotes local tourism, officials said.

“Wet and shaken up is definitely an understatement,” Quagliano said.

The boat was near the end of its 350-foot journey when it capsized.

"There's no treacherous spots to traverse or anything like that. It's well-lit throughout the cave system," Quagliano said. "This place has been in operation for decades without incident. The staff there is very well trained."

Investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board, the sheriff's office and local police were at the scene.

“So at this time, we are considering it a crime scene until further notice,” Abbott said.

The famed Lockport Cave was the subject of a 2016 episode of the Syfy network show "Ghost Hunters.”

The owner has been cooperating with investigators in the early stages of the probe, authorities said. Operators of the site did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the 1800s, the site, which includes early Erie Canal locks, was used for a pioneering system that fed and pressurized the city's fire hydrants. The cave and boat tour, which commenced in 1977, is promoted as a must-see attraction for visitors to nearby Niagara Falls.

The boat that capsized was built specifically for travel in that cave, officials said.

"So it's not something that was built ... and brought in at a later date," Abbott said. "They actually built it within the structure of that cave."

The cause of the capsizing was under investigation, the fire department said.

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1 dead after tour boat capsizes inside Erie Canal water tunnel cave in western New York

Cave tour boat capsize.

A boat carrying hospitality workers capsized Monday during a tour of a historic underground cavern system built to carry water from the Erie Canal beneath the western New York city of Lockport, killing one person who became trapped beneath the overturned vessel, officials said.

All 29 people on board the flat-bottomed boat operated by Lockport Cave Tours were thrown into water between 5 feet and 6 feet deep when the craft tipped over toward the end of the roughly 300-foot route.

The tours take visitors on an underground boat ride through a dimly lit, rough-hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport canal water as an industrial power source.

Some passengers dunked into the water were able to get to safety on their own. Rescue crews using an inflatable boat rescued about 16 others, Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano said.

Jeremy Swiatowy, 42, watched as rescue workers breached the wall to the tunnel with a sledgehammer before shimmying through the hole to reach people inside.

“The water in the caves is super cold,” he said.

When rescuers reached the boat, some passengers had climbed on top of its upturned hull, Quagliano said at a news conference.

Authorities did not immediately release the name of the man who died. His wife was taken to a hospital.

A total of 11 people were brought to hospitals, mostly with minor injuries, the fire chief said.

All of the passengers were hospitality employees from across Niagara County, according to Andrea Czopp, chief operating officer at Destination Niagara USA. The agency organized the outing as part of a familiarization tour, she said.

Authorities said the specially built motorboat holds up to 40 people, who sit in rows about four across. During the ride, about two to three feet of space separate the boat and cave walls on either side.

Nobody on board had a life preserver, authorities said. It was unclear whether they were required or offered.

The company that operates the tours did not immediately respond to phone calls and an email seeking comment.

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said the attraction, located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Niagara Falls, has operated since the mid-1970s, without incident. It will remain closed during an investigation.

“This is very sad for everybody,” she said.

Police Chief Steven Abbott said the cave and canal are private property.

“We have a lot of questions that need to be answered,” he said.

Video footage from the scene outside the Lockport Cave office showed one person talking as she was loaded onto an ambulance. Others wrapped in white towels were being escorted to a bus as a steady rain fell.

The water tunnel was once the subject of an episode of the Syfy network show “Ghost Hunters."

Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz in New York City and Michael Hill in Albany contributed to this report.

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1 dead after boat capsizes during underground cave tour in upstate New York

The man who died may have been stuck under the capsized boat.

One person has died after a tour boat capsized Monday morning at the Lockport Cave, a historical, underground boat ride by the Erie Canal in upstate New York , the local fire chief said.

Twenty-nine adults -- 28 of whom were Niagara County hospitality employees -- were on the small boat, which can handle 40 passengers, Lockport Fire Department Chief Luca Quagliano said at a news conference. At one point the boat became unbalanced and capsized, throwing everyone into the water, he said.

The man who died may have been stuck under the capsized boat, Quagliano said.

About 16 people were rescued by fire and EMS personnel, Quagliano said. Everyone else was able to get themselves to safety, he said, noting that the water is about 6 feet deep.

Eleven people were taken to hospitals for minor injuries, Quagliano said.

No one on board was wearing a life jacket, Quagliano said.

It's not clear why the boat capsized, the fire chief said.

The victim, who was not identified, was believed to be about 60 years old, Quagliano said, noting that his wife was among the people taken to a hospital.

Lockport is about 30 miles northeast of Buffalo.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul tweeted that her "team is in close contact with local officials and emergency operations teams."

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1 dead after tour boat capsizes in Erie Canal water tunnel cave in Lockport, New York

LOCKPORT, N.Y. (AP) — One person was killed and multiple people were sent to local hospitals after a boat capsized Monday during a tour of an underground cavern system built to carry water from the Erie Canal beneath the western New York city of Lockport, officials said.

Police and fire crews were called to the Lockport Cave Tours, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Niagara Falls, at about 11:30 a.m. The tours take visitors on an underground boat ride illuminated only by small lights.

“The boat did a 180-degree turn, so the bottom of the boat was upright in the water,” Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano said at a news conference. “A number of victims were on top of that boat initially when rescuers got to them.”

He said all 29 people on board the flat-bottom boat were thrown into water between 5 feet and 6 feet deep when the boat apparently became unbalanced and capsized toward the end of the roughly 300-foot tunnel.

Some passengers were able to get to safety on their own. Rescue crews using an inflatable boat rescued about 16 others, he said.

Authorities did not immediately release the name of the man who died. His wife was taken to a hospital, officials said.

“We have had eight of the passengers come into our ER,” said Patricia Brandt, spokeswoman for Eastern Niagara Hospital in Lockport. “None critical. They’re all stable and some have already been released.”

Brandt said she did not know the nature of the injuries but believed some were treated for cold from being in the water. Other patients went to other hospitals, she said, but did not have details.

Video footage from the scene outside the Lockport Cave office showed one person talking as she was loaded onto an ambulance. Others wrapped in white towels were being escorted to a bus as a steady rain fell.

Photos and videos posted on the Lockport Cave website show small, flat-bottom boats slipping through a rough-hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport extra water from the Erie Canal to power nearby businesses.

The tunnel was once the subject of an episode of the Syfy network show “Ghost Hunters.”

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Tour boat capsize in New York underground cave wasn't the first: agency

Tour boat capsizes.

Officials held a news conference after rescuing several passengers from a tour boat that capsized

LOCKPORT, NY - Soon after a tour boat flipped over during a tour of a dimly lit cavern system, leaving one passenger dead, members of another group recalled a similar experience while taking the same tour eight years ago, and questioned whether anything had been done since then to make the attraction safer.

News of the 2015 capsizing emerged as the investigation into Monday's accident continued. A passenger who survived the most recent ordeal recounted how he fought to breathe under the upside down craft.

The flat-bottomed boat carrying local hospitality workers capsized during a tour of a historic underground water tunnel off the Erie Canal in the western New York city of Lockport.

1 dead, several rescued after tour boat capsizes in underground NY cave

One person was killed and multiple people were sent to local hospitals after a boat capsized Monday during a tour of an underground cavern system built to carry water from the Erie Canal beneath the western New York city of Lockport, officials said.

Eight years earlier, clients and staff of the former Baker Victory Services ended up in the water when their boat also flipped, said John Pitts, spokesman for the agency, which has since been renamed OLV Human Services.

Few details about the incident were available, according to Pitts, who arrived the following year. He said it was unclear whether it was formally reported.

• RELATED: 'I couldn’t find any air pockets': Passenger speaks after tour boat capsizes in NY cave, killing 1

"I wish I knew more, but all I understand is that there was an incident where a boat had turned over and our staff and various individuals helped individuals out of the water to safety," he said.

On Monday, one man died, and 11 people were taken to hospitals, mostly with minor injuries, after the tour boat operated by Lockport Cave Tours capsized.

The passenger who died was also trapped beneath the boat. Lockport police late Tuesday identified him as Harshad Shah. An online obituary from M.J. Colucci & Son Niagara Funeral Chapel identified Shah as a 65-year-old Niagara Falls resident who served as president of the Budget Host Inn in Niagara Falls.

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said during a news conference that the attraction, located about 20 miles northeast of Niagara Falls, has operated since the mid-1970s without incident.

That's when Sheri Scavone said she "lost it." She said her son, then 15, was on the boat that capsized in 2015 and is still traumatized by the experience he remembers vividly.

"Thankfully, this kid knew how to swim and was strong," Scavone said by phone Tuesday, "but there was nothing to grab onto, the sides were slippery. It was pitch black. The boat was capsized."

At the time, Scavone was only concerned with her son's well-being, she said. Now, she wishes she hadn't let it go and is troubled that the tours have continued to operate without at least handing out life jackets.

The tour boat’s operator has not responded to requests for comment.

City of Lockport Police were investigating the accident. The mayor's office and fire chief did not respond to emails and texts seeking an update Tuesday.

The tours take visitors on an underground boat ride through a rough-hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport canal water as an industrial power source.

CAROLYN THOMPSON, with the Associated Press, helped contribute to this report.

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New York boat capsized – : One person dead after tour boat accident during cave tour along the Erie Canal

One person died and eleven others were injured when the boat capsized during lockport cave tour, article bookmarked.

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A tour boat capsized inside a cave 20 miles from Niagara Falls on Monday morning.

Lockport Police said that passengers were on board the Lockport Cave & Underground tour boat when it overturned around 11.20am. Multiple agencies were called to the scene to search for the passengers in the water.

Mayor Michelle Roman said during a press conference that one person was killed during the accident, according to Spectrum News. The name of the fatal victim was not released but authorities said he was in his 60s and his wife is recovering at hospital.

Twenty-eight passengers and one staff member were on board when the tour boat overturned. According to Lockport Fire Chief Luca Quagliano, sixteen people were rescued by boat after the wall outside the cave was breached.

The rest of the passengers walked out of the cave themselves as the water in the caves is around two to six feet in depth.

The individuals on board the boat were all locals participating in a free tour for hospitality workers.

Rescue efforts under way after tour boat capsizes in New York cave

Lockport Police said that up to 36 passengers were on board the Lockport Cave & Underground tour boat when it capsized on Monday

How deep is the water at Lockport Cave?

According to an NYup.com article, the water is only two to four feet deep.

The passengers onboard the capsized boat were on exploring the caves on a 75-minute tour.

For the first leg of the guided tour, visitors walked along the Erie Canal, which is just a 30-minute drive from Niagara Falls.

All passengers rescued, report says

Streets were closed to conduct rescues.

Streets were closed just before 11.30am to allow rescue vehicles in the area.

All 36 passengers onboard the Lockport Cave & Underground have been rescued, WBEN reports.

Boat capsized during tour of historic caves

Lockport Cave is a half-mile-long manmade tunnel created in the 19th century with the original purpose of transporting water from the Erie Canal to the nearby Holly Manufacturing Company to power the plant.

In the 1970s, it was turned into an attraction offering thrilling underground boat rides to tourists.

Boat capsizes in New York cave

The Independent ’s Rachel Sharp and Graeme Massie report:

Passengers recovering at hospital

According to ABC, four passengers are being treated at Eastern Niagara Health System.

Their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

‘Weight shift caused boat capsize,’ law enforcement say

Law enforcement officials told The Niagara Gazette t hat a tour group was making its way through the cave when weight seemingly shifted on the boat, causing it to capsize.

All of the passengers ended up in the water with the boat on top of them.

Press conference announced

Authorities in Lockport, New York, will hold a press conference at 3pm ET.

Accident during historical guided tour

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Tour boat capsize in underground cave wasn’t the first, agency says; passenger recounts ordeal

LOCKPORT, N.Y. (AP) — Soon after a  tour boat flipped over  during a tour of a dimly lit cavern system, leaving one passenger dead, members of another group recalled a similar experience while taking the same tour eight years ago and questioned whether anything had been done since then to make the attraction safer.

News of the 2015 capsizing emerged as the investigation into Monday’s accident continued — and a passenger who survived the most recent ordeal recounted how he fought to breathe under the upside down craft.

The flat-bottomed boat carrying local hospitality workers capsized during a tour of a historic underground water tunnel off the Erie Canal in the western New York city of Lockport.

Eight years earlier, clients and staff of the former Baker Victory Services ended up in the water when their boat also flipped, said John Pitts, spokesman for the agency, which has since been renamed OLV Human Services.

Few details about the incident were available, according to Pitts, who arrived the following year. He said it was unclear whether it was formally reported.

“I wish I knew more, but all I understand is that there was an incident where a boat had turned over and our staff and various individuals helped individuals out of the water to safety,” he said.

On Monday, one man died and 11 people were taken to hospitals, mostly with minor injuries, after the tour boat operated by Lockport Cave Tours capsized.

“By the time I realized what happened, the boat was on top of me and I couldn’t find any air pockets or anything. And I’m just trying to, like, breathe because I’m underwater,” survivor Daniel Morrissette told ABC’s “Good Morning America” in an interview aired Tuesday.

The passenger who died also was trapped beneath the boat. Lockport police late Tuesday identified him as Harshad Shah. An online obituary from M.J. Colucci & Son Niagara Funeral Chapel identified Shah as a 65-year-old Niagara Falls resident who served as president of the Budget Host Inn in Niagara Falls.

“His wife remains in shock, unable to come to terms with this fatal event that unfolded before her eyes,” a  statement from Shah’s family, tweeted by WRGZ , said. “We are all seeking answers to the why and how of this tragedy.”

Lockport Mayor Michelle Roman said during a news conference that the attraction, located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Niagara Falls, has operated since the mid-1970s without incident.

That’s when Sheri Scavone said she “lost it.” She said her son, then 15, was on the boat that capsized in 2015 and is still traumatized by the experience he remembers vividly.

“Thankfully, this kid knew how to swim and was strong,” Scavone said by phone Tuesday, “but there was nothing to grab onto, the sides were slippery. It was pitch black. The boat was capsized.”

At the time, Scavone was only concerned with her son’s well-being, she said. Now she wishes she hadn’t let it go and is troubled that the tours have continued to operate without at least handing out life jackets.

The tour boat’s operator has not responded to requests for comment.

Samantha North  told The Buffalo News  that she also was on the 2015 tour as an employee of Baker Victory.

The boat became unbalanced and flipped midway through the tour, she said, after passengers were instructed to stand up and turn around for the return trip.

“It seemed like it took forever” to get out of the chilly water, she said, where passengers, purses, cellphones, keys and other belongings ended up.

Elizabeth Morrissette, who appeared on “GMA” alongside her husband, Daniel, said people were panicking and yelling loudly Monday as she and the other passengers were thrown into the water, which emergency officials said was between 5 feet and 6 feet deep.

Some passengers were able to get to safety themselves. Emergency crews used an inflatable boat to rescue about 16 others, fire officials said.

City of Lockport Police were investigating the accident. The mayor’s office and fire chief did not respond to emails and texts seeking an update Tuesday.

The tours take visitors on an underground boat ride through a rough-hewn tunnel, which was blasted out in the 19th century to transport canal water as an industrial power source.

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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Tour boat capsizes in cave in upstate New York

A tour boat that takes visitors through caves and underground capsized in upstate New York on Monday, according to Lockport Police. It is unclear if anyone was injured in the incident or how the boat capsized.

“Lockport Police and Fire Departments, as well as several other agencies, are currently working to assist parties that were on a boat that capsized in the Lockport Cave Tours,” Lockport Police Department said in a statement posted on Facebook. “Crews are working to assist all parties safely out of the area. The incident is still ongoing. The surrounding streets have been closed to allow rescue vehicles and crews access. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”

The Lockport Cave and Underground Boat Ride’s website states that the unique historic tour is “just a 30 minute drive from Niagara Falls or Buffalo.”

“Experience an underground boat ride that is both Unique and Mysterious: The next part of your journey is a one-of-a-kind underground boat ride. Embark on one of America’s longest underground boat rides along the Erie Canal and experience a trip of wonders,” the website says about the boating portion of the tour.

“Visitors are awestruck as they take a ride that has been described as both ‘peaceful and eerie’ as the boat glides through the lifeless water, illuminated only by small, sporadically placed electric lights,” it adds.

Last year, eight people were rescued by U.S. Air Force personnel after their boat flipped over off Florida’s Gulf Coast, catching the attention of a dangerous bull shark.

The rescue was very difficult due to tall waves, forcing the patrol boat to call for backup. The Coast Guard and Hillsborough County Sherriff’s Office also responded to the emergency.

This was a breaking news story. The details were periodically updated as more information became available. 

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