LOCKPORT, N.Y. – One person died Monday after a tour boat capsized in an underground cave in upstate New York, throwing nearly 30 people into the water, according to multiple reports.
Lockport police said they were among several agencies that responded to a report of the situation in the Lockport Cave around 11:30 a.m. The cave is about 30 miles northeast of Buffalo.
Lockport Fire Chief Luca C.P. Quagliano told WGRZ that about 28 passengers and one operator were on the boat when it became unbalanced and capsized. One person was trapped underneath the boat and died at the scene, the news station reported. Authorities did not immediately identify the person, though WIVB-TV reported that he was about 60 years old and that his wife was also onboard the boat at the time of the incident.
Emergency personnel rescued 16 people from the water while the others were able to walk out of the canal, WGRZ reported. Eleven people were taken to hospitals with injuries that officials described a relatively minor, according to WIVB.
The Lockport Cave is about 70 feet underground and adjacent to the Erie Canal, with water from four to six feet deep, WIVB reported. The Lockport Cave & Underground Boat Ride, which operates tours in the cave, opened in June 1977.
