Eight still hospitalized after New Orleans riverboat capsize; tanker recorder recovered

Eight people remained hospitalized Saturday afternoon, November 14, after the tanker Atlantic Asphalt struck the docked cruise vessel the previous day. Two were in serious condition and six were stable. Everyone aboard both vessels has been accounted for, with no deaths reported. National Transportation Safety Board investigators have reached the scene and recovered the tanker's voyage data recorder, an important step toward explaining why a moving ship struck a stationary one.⁠2⁠4

In our November 14 report, including the 09:01 UTC update, we reported that everyone survived and 32 people had been taken to hospitals. Officials then described the passenger injuries as non-critical, and investigators' arrival was still ahead. Saturday's medical assessment and recorder recovery advance that account. “Serious” and “critical” are different medical categories: the latest statement does not establish that a particular patient's condition deteriorated, but the early reassurance is no longer a sufficient description of the human cost.⁠25⁠2⁠4

The collision occurred about 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 13, at the port's Thalia Street Terminal. American Heritage, operated by American Cruise Lines, had docked about two hours earlier. Passengers were preparing to leave, or already coming ashore, after an eight-day cruise through Louisiana and Mississippi.⁠2⁠3⁠5

Atlantic Asphalt was traveling upriver when it struck the riverboat's rear section and port side. American Heritage took on water, listed and rolled onto its side while evacuation was still underway, becoming largely submerged. Witness Jamie Holford told CBS News he saw people hurrying off, then climbing over railings as the vessel rolled. He described the sound as “tons of steel crunching.”⁠10⁠115⁠2

Tugboat operators, nearby workers and private vessels joined Harbor Police, city police, firefighters and the Coast Guard. Harbor Police Chief Melanie Montroll estimated that 87 passengers and crew left while the riverboat remained afloat; Mayor Helena Moreno's Saturday estimate puts approximately 100 people pulled from the water. Those are estimates for different parts of the evacuation, not a reconciled rescue ledger. Officials credited life jackets and the fast response with preventing deaths.⁠8⁠10⁠2⁠4

Moreno said the riverboat's captain was injured but remained until passengers and crew were accounted for, becoming the last person to leave. He initially refused treatment while checking where everyone was. American Cruise Lines has been arranging hotels and necessities for displaced passengers.⁠4⁠25

The precise number aboard remains unsettled. On November 14, La Voz de Galicia reported up to 129 people aboard, FRANCE 24 reported 180 passengers and crew, and CBS Los Angeles later reported Moreno's total of 191. The port's own estimate of approximately 129 covers passengers excluding crew. The Guardian's November 14 account gives 197 passengers, another unreconciled figure. No final public manifest explains those differences.⁠13⁠8⁠2⁠3⁠112

These categories matter. American Heritage's stated capacity of 150 passengers does not include a crew total and does not establish actual occupancy. Nor should people already ashore, people evacuated directly and people pulled from the river be treated as interchangeable rescue counts.⁠2

The hospitalization breakdown is also unresolved. La Voz de Galicia's November 14 account retained an early estimate of 12 hospital transports, superseded by later reporting. WorkBoat reported 30 passengers and two Harbor Police officers that day; CBS Los Angeles reported 32 passengers and separately described two officers hospitalized in good condition. Neither a definitive combined total of 32 nor an additional-officers total of 34 is established. Saturday's eight remaining patients is the clearest subsequent update, not a discharge-by-discharge accounting.⁠13⁠10⁠2

The NTSB's arrival followed delays caused by a nationwide aviation ground stop. Board member John DeLeeuw held a Saturday briefing confirming that investigators had examined the overturned riverboat and recovered Atlantic Asphalt's voyage data recorder. The recorder captures speed through the water, heading, course and bridge audio. Its recovery is evidence gathering, not an announcement of what the recordings prove.⁠112⁠2

Investigators were scheduling interviews over the next two days and preparing to inspect the tanker across the river. Safe access to American Heritage and preservation of evidence are immediate priorities. “Before anything gets done, we have to make sure it's safe for the investigators,” DeLeeuw said.⁠112

Coast Guard Capt. Melanie Burnham has described an apparent loss of steering, while stressing that the reason remains unknown. Moreno said the tanker “lost control.” Neither description establishes a mechanical defect, pilot error or negligent maintenance. Burnham also said she had no indication that the collision was terrorism-related.⁠2⁠4

Reporting by The Times-Picayune | The Advocate supplies a more detailed approach: the tanker passed Algiers Point at about nine knots, turned sharply to starboard before the Crescent City Connection, slowed through seven and six knots, and dropped anchors before striking at nearly a right angle. A longtime local river pilot was aboard. State engineers found no collision damage to the bridge. Those observations describe the approach; they do not explain why control was lost.⁠115

The newspaper also obtained records showing an autopilot malfunction near Baltimore in July 2024, lost bridge-to-engine communications in Wilmington that September, rescue boats unprepared for rapid deployment in 2025 and faulty pump-room wiring in June 2026. Canadian and European regulators recorded other deficiencies in 2025. Records indicate that the crew took steps to address problems.⁠115

Maritime lawyer Carra Miller called the volume of deficiencies unusual for a tanker built in 2017, but said none stood out as directly connected to this collision. That is the essential distinction: a maintenance history worth investigating is not a finding of cause.⁠115

The riverboat's flooding also needs investigation. Former American Heritage navigation officer Colby Snyder, who worked aboard until 2024, told the newspaper it lacked watertight doors found on offshore industrial ships and said water could spread along its hull. His account is not an engineering finding about the vessel's condition or proof of why it capsized.⁠115

River access has changed since the emergency closure between mile markers 93 and 96. FRANCE 24's November 14 report said the waterway remained closed pending assessment and clearance; Fox News later reported a partial reopening to two-way traffic, with Atlantic Asphalt moved away and a 500-foot safety zone remaining around American Heritage. The later account supersedes the blanket-closure description. The exact reopening chronology and ferry-service resumption remain unconfirmed.⁠8⁠4⁠58

Divers were expected to assess the wreck, while pollution teams monitored the river. Burnham said crews had not observed product in the water requiring removal, but warned hazardous materials could escape during recovery. The fuel estimate concerns American Heritage—not an established cargo quantity aboard Atlantic Asphalt. The tanker's asphalt-and-bitumen specialization does not establish what it carried during the collision.⁠4⁠2

Financial accountability has already reached federal court. The port's November 13 lawsuit names Atlantic Asphalt, owner Nave Shipping SA and manager Thome Ship Management Pte Ltd. It alleges more than $1 million in port-property damage and seeks cleanup, inspection, repair and other expenses. That is not a final estimate of all losses from the collision.⁠5

Judge Wendy B. Vitter authorized seizure of the tanker on November 13. Physical seizure has not been confirmed, and authorization is neither a completed sale nor a final liability judgment. Maritime law's presumption against a moving vessel striking something stationary can be challenged. OSM Thome says its crew is safe, the tanker is stable at anchor and it is cooperating with authorities.⁠112⁠115⁠5

DeLeeuw estimated a preliminary report in about 30 days and a final report addressing probable causes and possible safety recommendations in 18–24 months. Those are expectations, not deadlines. The successful rescue settled the search for survivors; it did not settle how this happened or how safely the wreck can be removed.⁠112