New York by chopper
By Basil Seggos, Chief Investigator, Hudson River
Riverkeeper boat captain John Lipscomb knows the Hudson better than anyone. Since 2001, he has logged 21,000 miles and 4,200 hours on the 140-mile stretch of river. But as well as a river can sear itself into one’s memory – its currents, its rocky outcrops, its salty personalities – John knows that a birds-eye is crucial for tracking down the most elusive polluters. Riverkeeper board member Howard Rubin jumped at the chance to make this happen. On May 6, 2005, New York Times reporter and photographer Giles Ashford, John and I took to the skies in a Bell 206L chopper, piloted by former Israeli Air Force lieutenant colonel Yossi Ben Bassat. We patrolled Newtown Creek and the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, two of New York Harbor’s most polluted waterways, then turned north at the Arthur Kill in Staten Island for a hundred-mile run up the Hudson to New York City’s reservoir system. We investigated a long rap sheet of crimes from above, including oil spills, leaking junkyards, plumes of sewage and discharge pipes. It was John’s first flight over the river, and for all of us, a crucial opportunity to cement cases against persistent and often invisible polluters. The sky offers an invaluable perspective but is not without danger. A month after the flight, the same chopper malfunctioned with Yossi at the controls and crashed into the East River shortly after takeoff. The world’s press hailed the ever-steady Yossi as a hero for saving the lives of each of his passengers.