Passengers from vessel run aground in harbor safely evacuated; Coast Guard investigating crash

John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

By Jack Nicas and Matt Carroll, Globe Staff

The Coast Guard is investigating how the Massachusetts, an 87-foot vessel carrying more than 170 people on a whale watching trip, ran aground two miles off Deer Island in Boston Harbor.

Rescuers -- from the Coast Guard, MBTA, and even fishermen in lobster boats -- quickly responded as the vessel began taking on water and took the 168 shaken passengers to Pemberton Pier in Hull. The boat had six crew members.

Coast Guard personnel from Station Point Allerton in Hull and Coast Guard Station Boston, were on scene this morning as well as units from Boston Fire, Massport Fire, State Police, Massachusetts Environmental Police.

In Hull, they were met by Coast Guard officers, from a station a few blocks away, and medical personnel who rushed at least three people with minor injuries to hospitals. The passengers, mostly tourists with scrapes and bruises, had the option of traveling back to Boston by another ferry or an MBTA bus with a transit police escort.

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The Coast Guard, which had received a distress signal at 10:04 a.m., said the injuries were twisted ankles and a hurt back.

Barry Martin of Malaysia, who was on the cruise with his parents and two children, said he feared his father had broken his ankle.

Martin was waiting at the Mass Bay Lines office at Rowes Wharf after receiving reimbursement for his tickets. He said the company offered to pay for a cab to take his parents from the hospital to his hotel.

About 30 minutes into the trip, passengers said, the tour guide was pointing out a harbor island to the left, when the boat came to a sudden and violent stop.

"We were physically thrown forward," said Maria Patane of Yonkers, N.Y.. "Kids were crying, people screaming. For a few seconds I thought we were going down."

"People were tumbling," said Skip Fulton, 39, of Lexington, Ohio. "We hit it hard."

His friend, Cheryl Coon, said she and other passengers were sitting on white plastic chairs on the deck when the boat struck rocks.

"I was in my chair and then I was on the floor," she said. Many of the chairs' legs snapped off at impact, sending passengers to the ground, said Coon and other passengers.

The Massachusetts, which is sometimes used by the MBTA as the Hingham ferry boat, had left Rowes Wharf in Boston at about 9:30 a.m. for what was supposed to be a four-hour trip. However, the vessel then struck a rock formation called the Devil's Rock, a well-known navigational hazard, according to Massachusetts State Police and Massachusetts Environmental Police.

The listing ship was still taking on water at 3 p.m., the Coast Guard said.

Almost exactly three years ago, a vessel with the same name was involved in a collision in Boston Harbor.

On July 10, 2007, the Massachusetts, working as a commuter ferry for the MBTA, collided with another commuter ferry, the Laura, while traveling through heavy fog. The crash cause structural damage but no injuries to the 151 passengers. A year earlier, the Massachusetts had an engine fire which required an evacuation and caused $800,000 in damage.

A 76-foot ferry boat, called the Lightning, owned by the MBTA, was among the boats that arrived to help take passengers to shore.

The Massachusetts Bay Lines whale watch guarantees a free ticket if no whales are spotted, but passengers interviewed were not in the mood to make a return trip.

The Mass. Bay Lines website describes the Massachusetts as "an ideal cruising vessel designed with the corporate client in mind. This ... vessel is very popular for VIP receptions, corporate outings, organizational gatherings, and holiday parties. Climate controlled on two levels for year round comfort, the M/V Massachusetts is a unique setting for any occasion."

It can hold up to 300, depending on the event, according to the site.

Christopher Girard, Globe Correspondent and John Guilfoil of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.