New York sewage-boat explosion victim identified as veteran city engineer

A longtime New York City Department of Environmental Protection employee has been identified as the victim of the sewage-boat explosion Saturday morning on the Hudson River in New York City.

Chief Marine Diesel Engineer Raymond Feige, 59, died in the explosion at the North River Wastewater Resource Recovery Facility in West Harlem, the DEP said in a statement Monday. The incident occurred at around 10:30 a.m. Saturday on a boat carrying raw sewage that was docked.

“Ray was a respected engineer and a steady, beloved colleague who will be deeply missed,” DEP Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala said. “For more than three decades, he worked at DEP in a job that is largely unseen by most New Yorkers but is critical to keeping the City running, and we are grateful for his service.”

The DEP said Feige started at the agency in 1991 in the marine section, where he remained for the rest of his decadeslong career with a love for working on the water and bonding with shipmates.

He “brought deep technical expertise and unwavering dedication” to the city’s wastewater operations, the agency said.

The diesel engineer was pronounced dead at the scene after being found unconscious in the river. Another DEP employee was taken to the hospital, and a third at the scene refused medical treatment.

The DEP said the explosion was caused by an accident on the boat, which is still under investigation. The agency said there appears to have been no impact on plant operations or the environment.