Ferry Tragedy

Twisted steel on the Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi, which was involved in a fatal accident at the ferry terminal in Staten Island, N.Y., Oct. 15, 2003. The ferry slammed into a pier as it was docking, killing at least 10 people and reducing the front of the mighty vessel to a shattered mass of wood, glass and steel.

View from a helicopter of the Andrew J. Barberi Staten Island ferry, center, after it crashed into a pier as it was docking Oct. 15, 2003, killing 10 people and injuring at least 42 others, including three who lost limbs.

Emergency crews wait next to the Staten Island ferry dock after the fatal accident Oct. 15, 2003.

Two unidentified men comfort each other outside the family assistance center set up by the Red Cross and Office of Emergency Management in the New York borough of Staten Island, following the Staten Island ferry accident, Oct. 15, 2003.

A man wearing a New York City Fire Department shirt and a woman are visibly distraught outside a gathering center for families looking for news of loved ones after the Staten Island Ferry accident.

Destruction to the interior of the Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi, which was involved in the fatal accident.

Officials inspect the top deck of a ferry boat in Staten Island, N.Y., that was involved in the fatal accident. The skyline of lower Manhattan (where the commuter ferry traveled from) is in the background.

A distraught woman is consoled outside the family assistance center set up by the Red Cross and Office of Emergency Management in the New York borough of Staten Island, following the Staten Island Ferry accident.

Destruction to the interior of the Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi.

More destruction to the interior of the Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known. Mayor Michael Bloomberg suggested the heavy wind as a possibility. Authorities on Thursday investigated whether a Staten Island ferry pilot lost consciousness during the trip. (Video still)

The pilot, who officials said might have failed to take needed medication, quickly bolted the scene, went home and attempted suicide, a law enforcement source told The Associated Press. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said pilot Richard Smith slit his wrists and shot himself with a pellet gun. Smith, 55, was in critical condition Wednesday night after surgery, St. Vincent's Hospital said. (Video still)

Commuters were left to dive for their lives when the ferry crashed at about 3:20 p.m. Many were trapped beneath the rubble, and firefighters combed through the debris by hand in a hunt for victims. (Video still)

The 310-foot ferry, carrying about 1,500 passengers, plowed into the enormous wooden pilings on the Staten Island end of its run from Manhattan. (Video still)

The Staten Island Ferry, pictured here in 2001, is used by tens of thousands of people every day. It is among the city's most beloved institutions, providing free rides and offering a spectacular view of the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor.

The sun rises over New York harbor as a Manhattan-bound ferry, one of the first since service was suspended, sails by Oct. 16, 2003.

Commuters disembark the Staten Island ferry in Manhattan on the morning of Oct. 16, 2003 in New York, after one of the first ferry rides since service was suspended after the worst mass transit accident in at least a generation.

Members of the Coast Guard ride the Staten Island ferry into Manhattan, right background, during one of the first ferry rides since service was suspended after the ferry slammed into a pier.

A tarp covers the damaged Staten Island ferry Andrew J. Barberi, which was involved in a fatal accident at the ferry terminal in Staten Island.

Miguel Santiago, left, reads about the crash of the Staten Island Ferry as he rides the ferry between New York's Staten Island and Manhattan, Oct. 16, 2003.