By Chris Francescani NEW YORK, Jan 9 (Reuters) - A high-speed commuter ferrycarrying hundreds of passengers crashed into a pier near WallStreet during the morning rush hour on Wednesday, injuring 57people, one critically, authorities said. Passengers who had boarded the 141-foot Seastreak WallStreet in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, and were queued up todisembark in New York, were thrown to its deck by the impact ofthe hard landing at 8:43 a.m. (1343 GMT). "People who were standing up flew because of the impact,"said passenger Brett Cebulash, 50, an attorney who regularlyrides the ferry that caters to white-collar employees with amonthly commuting cost of $655. "It was a normal morning, we were rolling into the dock andthen they hit something. There was a sudden impact," he said. The ferry, on its morning run from the high-end community onthe Jersey Shore that is still recovering from Superstorm Sandy,suffered a gash in its right front side. Firefighters and rescueworkers rushed to the scene, as did Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The boat was traveling on calm waters at between 10 to 12knots, or about 11.5 to 14 miles per hour when it crashed intothe pier, New York City Department of TransportationCommissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said. That is roughly equivalentto the force of catching a 200-pound bag of cement dropped froma first-floor window, experts said. The gruesome scene of passengers lying on stretchers at thepier recalled earlier landing crashes involving the StatenIsland ferry, including one in October 2003, which killed 11people and injured dozens more, and one in May 2010 that injuredaround 40 people. The ferry pilot in the 2003 crash and his supervisor weresentenced to more than a year in prison each for their roles inthe accident. The pilot, Richard Smith, had passed out at thehelm. He had taken painkillers the night before for a bad back. The crew of the Seastreak passed breathalyzer testsadministered after Wednesday's accident, police officials said. Some of the injured were taken to the hospital, while otherswere treated at the scene, a spokesperson for the FireDepartment of New York said. Of the 57 people injured, two were initially reported incritical condition with head injuries, although one was laterupgraded by hospital officials, nine were serious and 17 were inguarded condition. Among the injured were two members of Barclay's Bank PLC, the company said. The National Transportation Safety Board said an 11-memberteam was heading to New York to begin an investigation into thecause of the crash. Seastreak Wall Street has had at least two previous dockingaccidents in 2009 and 2010, including one tied to mechanicalfailure, according to a Coast Guard website. About 327 people were aboard the boat on Wednesday, said TomWynne, spokesman for Seastreak, which boasts on its website thatits "fast passenger catamarans provide the fastest commute toNew York City!" The accident occurred as commuters lined up to quicklydisembark the craft and start their workday. "The ferry came into the dock hard," Wynne said. "When thevessel hit the dock, the passengers obviously fell." He declined to name the ferry captain but said, "All of ourcaptains have a great deal of experience." The ferry that crashed on Wednesday is run by Seastreak, acompany owned by the Barker and Tregurtha families, who also ownthe Interlake Steamship Company, Mormac Marine Group, Inc, andMoran Towing Co, the largest tug and barge operator on the Eastand Gulf Coasts, according to the company's website.
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