Metro

Investigators eye mechanical failure after at least 74 injured as Seastreak ferry crashes into Pier 11

Investigators are focusing on mechanical failure for today’s ferry crash at Pier 11, which injured at least 74 rush-hour commuters — many who went flying on impact, sources said.

The Seastreak ferry began its daily journey from Highlands, NJ, and crashed at 8:50 a.m. near Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, bringing a rescuers from the Coast Guard, NYPD and FDNY, authorities said.

PHOTOS: SEASTREAK FERRY CRASHES INTO PIER 11

Before crashing, the ferry struck and destroyed a buoy floating in the harbor channel, about 40 yards away from the dock, a source told The Post.

“It wiped out the buoy,” the source said.

Mayor Bloomberg inspects the damage after the commuter ferry slammed into Pier 11 this morning. A large hole can be seen in the front of the boat after the crash.

Mayor Bloomberg inspects the damage after the commuter ferry slammed into Pier 11 this morning. A large hole can be seen in the front of the boat after the crash. (AFP/Getty Images)

Injured people seen on stretchers today after a Seastreak ferry crashed into Pier 11.

Injured people seen on stretchers today after a Seastreak ferry crashed into Pier 11. (Seth Gottfried)

Emergency response crews are seen on the dock after the Seastreak hit Pier 11.

Emergency response crews are seen on the dock after the Seastreak hit Pier 11. (@hustle_city_akeel via Instagram)

Emergency response crews are seen on the dock after the Seastreak hit Pier 11.

Emergency response crews are seen on the dock after the Seastreak hit Pier 11. (@hustle_city_akeel via Instagram)

It’s believed the ferry either developed a mechanical problem, forcing it into the buoy — or that the buoy collision caused mechanical failure, leading to the craft’s crash into the dock, the source said.

The captain was identified as Jason Reimer by Seastreak executives.

Reimer, 36, a resident of New Jersey, joined the company as a deckhand in 1997 after working on fishing boats, and became a captain within three years.

Reimer and the four other crewmen aboard the ferry declined to talk to investigators immediately after the crash, referring authorities to their Seastreak-hired lawyers, who arrived at the scene not long after the collision.

But Robert Sumwalt, a National Transportation Safety Board member, said investigators plan to interview crew members tomorrow.

Margaret Reimer, the captain’s stepmom said: “Yes I heard about the accident but I haven’t been able to speak to my son yet. He’s a very good captain. I really think you need to speak to him.”

“He’s always been on the water with his father since he was a baby,” Margaret Reimer added.

Jillian Donohue, the captain’s girlfriend, said: “Physically, he’s fine.”

“He seems to be doing fine. He has a lot of guidance,” she said outside his Red Bank, NJ, home. “The company is sticking by him. He’s been with them a long time.”

There were 326 people on board and five crew members on the craft, officials said. None of the passengers or crew fell into the water.

“All of a sudden, people that were standing up went flying into the aisles — people flew four, five, six feet,” said commuter Roy Marleau, a 39-year-old education consultant from Rumson, NJ who suffered minor bumps and scrapes on his head.

“People that were standing outside crashed into glass doors and shattered them.”

Allenhurst NJ commuter Anthony Lucia — the 50-year-old North American CEO of premium jeans maker G-Star — said he was tossed at least 15 feet.

“All I can tell you is [that] it was brutal,” Luica said after he was released from New York Downtown Hospital. “We were just pulling in [but] you couldn’t tell it [the ferry] was getting ready to dock. It hit something and it was a disaster.”

Lucia painted a wild picture of the scene on board immediately after impact: “It happened so quick, everyone was lying everywhere. Everyone flew and people were on the ground.”

The craft, just this past year, was re-fitted with new propellers to replace original propulsion water jets, according to an Aug. 28 report in nautical trade mag Marine Log.

The new system, installed by a Louisiana ship builder, cut maximum speed from 38 knots to 32 knots, but boosted fuel efficiency and cut carbon emissions in half, Marine Log reported.

Dee Wertz, who was on shore waiting for the ferry, said that just moments before it hit, she had been talking to a ferry employee. That worker allegedly mentioned how the boat’s captains had been complaining lately about its maneuverability.

“He was telling me that none of these guys like this boat,” she said. “It was coming in a little wobbly. It hit the right side of the boat on the dock hard, like a bomb.”

After the impact, the boat was able to dock normally. Wertz said passengers raced off once the ramp was down.

“I think people just wanted to get the heck off the boat as soon as they could,” she said.

The craft’s starboard-side bow appeared to sustain significant damage in the cash — though the ferry was stable and secured to the dock.

Ferry commuter Sean Boyle told reporters at the scene that the craft went: “Full speed into the pier.”

Overhead TV news cameras captured troubling images of commuters all over the dock, in stretchers with heads taped down to secure their necks.

“We were pulling into the dock. The boat hit the dock. We just tumbled on top of each other. I got thrown into everybody else,” said Ellen Foran, 57, of Neptune City, NJ. “People were hysterical, crying.”

Of the 74 injured, police said 29 went to Bellevue, 23 to New York Downtown, eight to Weill Cornell, six to Beth Israel, four to Long Island College, and two each to Lenox Hill and Brooklyn Hospital.

“It [the ferry] hit Slip D and then continued on and hit Slip B,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan. “Basically it was a hard landing. It looked like it was 10 to 12 knots.”

Passenger Frank McLaughlin, 46, whose home was filled with five feet of water after Hurricane Sandy, said he was thrown forward and wrenched his knee in the impact.

He said some other passengers were bloodied when they banged into walls and toppled to the floor.

“First and foremost, our thoughts and prayers are with the people that got injured and we regret very much what happened,” Seastreak chairman James Rex Barker said.

“He [Reimer] had been with the company for a long while, I think 10 years. He’s not doing well. This was a very serious accident.”

The company said injured crew members were still able to help evacuate passengers.

“The vessel’s crew immediately initiated emergency response procedures and authorities responded quickly due to the location,” according to a Seastreak statement.

All five crew members, including Reimer, tested negative for alcohol after the crash.

The boat that crashed today — the Seastreak Wall Street — has been involved in three other collisions while docking, according to Coast Guard records.

The ship hit a cluster of fender piles docking on Jan. 29, 2010. That incident left a hole above the waterline on the left side. No one was injured. It’s unclear where that incident occurred.

And on Aug. 11, 2009, the boat was at East 35th Street when the helm control malfunctioned and the front right side struck something, according to an incident report. The ferry then headed to its New Jersey dock, where it was found to have a two to three inch tear on its right side. No injuries were reported.

Coast Guard inspectors in Dec. 2006 found a foot-long, quarter-inch crack in the right side of the hull. It was determined that the crack was caused by the ship hitting an “unknown pier,” according to the Coast Guard’s report.

The ferry line had a craft scheduled to arrive at Pier 11, originating from Highlands, NJ. That commute is a $26 one-way or $45 round-trip fare.

This craft originated from Connors Higland Terminal in Highlands, NJ, at 8 a.m. and had scheduled 8:45 a.m. and 9 a.m. arrivals at Pier 11 and East 35 Street in Manhattan, respectively. This Jersey-to-Manhattan commute is a $26 one-way or $45 round-trip fare.

The crash has forced Seastreak to cancel a 5:55 p.m. journey that would have started at East 35th Street, with a 6:10 p.m. stop at Pier 11 and two final New Jersey dockings in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands.

Additional reporting by Larry Celona, Dan Mangan, David K. Li, Reuven Fenton, Ikimulisa Livingston, Jennifer Fermino, and Lorena Mongelli. With AP.