1 Killed, 1 Injured When Boat Slams Into Bicyclists On Staten Island

NEW YORK(CBSNewYork) -- A boat on a trailer detached from the truck that was hauling it and slammed into two bicyclists on Staten Island on Monday.

The freak accident turned an evening bike ride deadly as one cyclist was killed and another was seriously hurt.

As TV 10/55's Tony Aiello reported, one investigator examined the 'tongue' on the boat trailer, while others spoke with the driver of the truck that had been pulling it.

Residents said Hylan Boulevard sees many accidents, but they can't remember one like this.

"I said 'Oh my God,' I saw the boat, it became unhinged, I saw one body not moving, I saw another on the other side," Nancy Maita said.

Investigators said the trailer somehow came unhitched from the pickup and struck two women riding bicycles.

One bike lay crumpled in the grass near a telephone pole, a pair of shoes from one of the victims was lying near the boat.

The accident cost a 22-year-old woman her life.

"There was two women, one was under the boat, couldn't get too close because I was calling 911, and I was very upset," Ana Kahan said.

First responders rushed the victims to Staten Island University Hospital where one of them later died.

The driver of the pickup truck remained at the scene and spoke with detectives.

One young man who works at the boat yard said there are several safeguards on a properly equipped hitch, including safety chains to keep the trailer from drifting away should the hitch come undone.

"I own a small boat myself and trailer it everywhere. For that to happen, it's insane, can't believe it happened," Matthew Lyons said.

Police were looking closely at the trailer hitch to determine if it had been modified, and if those modifications contributed to the accident.

It was not clear if the driver will face charges.