Coast Guard Recommends Criminal Charges for Deadly Miami Barge Collision

The U.S. Coast Guard has recommended criminal charges of seaman's manslaughter in connection with the barge collision that killed three young girls in Miami's inner harbor earlier this year.

On the morning of July 28, a barge hit a small sailboat near Hibiscus Island, a residential community off Miami Beach. The boat was operated by a sail training camp, and five young girls were aboard, led by a 19-year-old instructor. All went into the water, and some of them came up beneath the barge. Two were pronounced dead at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and two more were evacuated with critical injuries. One of the injured later succumbed.

The barge was propelled by the Wood Chuck, a small harbor pushboat. Lorenzo Palomares, an attorney for the tug's owner, told the Miami Herald that the skipper had seen the flotilla of sailboats and had attempted to steer away - but one boat darted out from the crowd and got in front of the barge, and there was too little time to avoid a collision.

The Wood Chuck was less than 26 feet in length. Below this size, merchant mariner credential licensing is not required for workboat operations (46 U.S. Code § 8904), and certain small-tug firms in South Florida had been known to hire unlicensed crew as a matter of practice. Crew licensure and training has been part of the Coast Guard's investigation.

"After conducting a thorough marine casualty investigation, we’ve referred this case to Department of Justice for criminal investigation to ensure full accountability and help deter similar cases in the future," said Coast Guard Sector Miami Commander Capt. Frank J. Florio. "As the process moves into this new phase, our thoughts and prayers are with those impacted by this tragic incident."

The Coast Guard did not name the suspects, saying only that it had recommended charges "against parties involved in the towing company."

The seaman's manslaughter statute can be applied to crew, owners or charterers in connection with a fatal casualty, and is brought in cases of "misconduct, negligence, or inattention."