Done In By Their Own Fat Asses

The latest theory for why that ferry sank in New York is outdated capacity charts. The Coast Guard failed to consider that people have gotten a lot fatter.

At the time it flipped over, the 38-foot Ethan Allen was just under its capacity of 48 passengers — a figure that was arrived at by using a New York standard that assumes a 150-pound average for each man, woman and child, authorities said. The U.S. Coast Guard standard assumes a 140-pound average for each person.