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DARTMOUTH — Investigators have ruled out alcohol as a cause of the fatal collision Friday between two boats on Buzzards Bay, but officials have investigated whether anyone was at the helm of the power boat that struck a Padanaram-based sailboat.
"Alcohol doesn't appear to be a factor in the accident," Sgt. Rick Sylvia of the Massachusetts Environmental Police said Monday.
Mr. Sylvia said that while investigators know the answer, they are not yet saying whether anyone was at the helm of the Reasons, a 63-foot, Gloucester-based power boat, when it hit the Priority, a 35-foot sailboat.
Experienced sailors familiar with the accident and the bay have speculated that either the Reasons was on auto pilot or someone was not paying attention when the accident happened.
Asked whether the power boat was on auto pilot, Mr. Sylvia said he "can't say at this time."
He said the investigative agencies involved will meet today and there may be a statement after that meeting.
The accident, which happened around 1:30 p.m. Friday about 2½ miles southeast of Mishaum Point in Dartmouth, resulted in the death of David J. "D.J." Walsh, 64, of Dartmouth, past chairman of the Buzzards Bay Regatta, and the retired president of Teledyne Rodney Metals, a specialty metals manufacturer.
Warren G. Hathaway, 66, of Dartmouth, publisher emeritus of Hathaway Newspapers, part of the SouthCoast Media Group, was injured but managed to escape the damaged sailboat.
Gregg Miliote, a spokesman for District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter, said Monday three people were aboard the Reasons — Fred Bevins III, 64, and Ellen Bevins, both of Gloucester, and a juvenile — at the time of the accident. Mr. Hathaway said the juvenile was the Bevins' grandson.
Mr. Bevins, who lists an address of 22 Honeysuckle Road, Gloucester, is the owner of the Reasons, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web site. He has not returned numerous calls from The Standard-Times to both his business and his home.
Mr. Miliote said the District Attorney's Office has jurisdiction over the case because the incident resulted in an unattended death in Bristol County.
"I don't have a specific cause of death to release at this time," he said.
Mr. Sylvia said the investigation is still in its "infancy" and investigators are inspecting both vessels and gathering evidence from the accident.
He said that investigators have "spoken to" Fred and Ellen Bevins.
Although there were other boats in the area, Mr. Sylvia said there were no witnesses to the collision. According to the Coast Guard, seas at the time were less than 1 foot and winds were 5 to 10 knots, with visibility of 2 to 3 miles.
Mr. Miliote said both boats have been impounded by investigators as evidence and are at the Fairhaven Shipyard and Marina, but he would not comment on many aspects of the investigation.
"Everything is being checked. We are performing an exhaustive investigation into what occurred," he said in an e-mail to The Standard-Times.
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