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Monday Bulletin: Yacht Crash on Hudson River Injures Dozens; Teen Hit by Lightning in Central Park Speaks Out; Former Columbia Student Released by ICE; Tuesday’s UWS Primary Details

June 23, 2025 | 8:04 AM
in NEWS, OUTDOORS, POLITICS
15
A “Vote Here” sign for an Upper West Side polling site. Photo Credit: Gus Saltonstall

Monday, June 23, 2025

Mostly sunny, high 96 degrees, though humidity will make it feel like 105.

The forecast for the first half of the week can be summed up in a single word: sweltering. Through Wednesday, expect mostly sunny skies and highs in the mid to upper 90s, with a record-breaking high of 98 degrees predicted for Tuesday. Humidity on all three days will make it feel as if the temperature is in the triple digits.

Notices
Our calendar has lots of local events. Click on the link or the lady in the upper righthand corner to check.

Tuesday is the Democratic primary election, which will determine who among the 11 candidates currently running for the Democratic mayoral nomination will face incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, running as an Independent, and presumed Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa in the November 2 general election.

Also on the ballot: candidates for city comptroller and public advocate, and Manhattan borough president and district attorney. If you live in District 7, you’ll also vote for a Democratic nominee for City Council. You can confirm whether you live within the district by typing in your address — HERE.

You’ll find our guide to the election — HERE.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Find your polling site — HERE.

Get a refresher on Ranked Choice Voting, which applies to all the races except for Manhattan DA — HERE.

Upper West Side News

By Laura Muha

A party yacht with 352 passengers on board slammed into a pier in the Hudson River over the weekend, injuring nearly three dozen people. 

“People were taking pictures. They were dancing. And the next thing we knew, the boat was kinda like it was gonna tip over,” passenger Sharon Thomas told PIX11 News. “People went flying. Chairs went flying.”

The yacht, called “Timeless,”  was trying to dock at the pier at 125th Street in Riverside Park when the collision occurred shortly at 4:15 p.m. on Saturday, officials said. U.S. Coast Guard units escorted the craft to the dock, where passengers disembarked. Thirty-five people suffered minor injuries, officials said; 13 of them refused medical attention and the others were taken to local hospitals for treatment. The yacht, which is the largest in a fleet operated by the private boat-rental company Empire Cruises, sustained some damage in the collision.

An investigation into the cause of the accident is ongoing.

Read/watch the full story — HERE.

The teenager who was struck by lightning in Central Park last week told WABC that he has second-degree burns to his neck and leg, but expects to make a full recovery. 

Yassin Khalifa, a high school sophomore, said he was picnicking in the park with friends when a thunderstorm began moving in quickly. “I told them, ‘Oh, guys, let’s ride out the storm,’” Khalifa told the news outlet. “Which in hindsight might not have been the best idea.”

The group was sheltering under a tree near East 101st Street when lightning struck the tree; the current, apparently attracted to Khalifa’s necklace, traveled through the trunk and briefly knocked him unconscious.

“Apparently, I’m pretty lucky, because my spine was directly against the tree and no nerve damage happened. So I’m like, not losing any sort of motor function. So I’m pretty happy about that,” Khalifa told WABC.

Read/watch the full story – HERE.

Former Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil, detained by immigration agents in March for his role in organizing campus pro-Palestinian protests, was reunited with his wife and infant son this weekend, after a federal judge ordered him released on bail.

In an interview after his return to New York, Mahmoud Khalil said he spent his 104 days in detention “tortured by the uncertainty” of what was going to happen, and worrying about his wife, who was eight months pregnant at the time he was detained. She gave birth to a son on April 21; Khalil petitioned for permission to attend the birth but it was denied.

To pass the time, Khalil said he helped to translate for other detainees so they could communicate their needs to authorities at the detention center in Louisiana where they were being held. “I tried my best to make a meaning out of my suffering there,” Khalil told The New York Times. “I didn’t want to just sit around and wait for my fate to be decided.”

Khalil was released on Friday after U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz, who is overseeing his case, ordered Khalil’s release on bail on Friday. “Petitioner is not a flight risk, and the evidence presented is that he is not a danger to the community,” Farbiarz said. “Period, full stop.”

However, Khalil’s case continues to make its way through immigration court, and the administration is still seeking to deport him.

Read the full story — HERE.

Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here. And you can Support the Rag here.

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15 Comments
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Allison
Allison
21 days ago

And instead of spending time with his newborn son, Mahmoud immediately came to the gates at Columbia and started riling shit up. Good job, justice department. As Tina Fey wrote in Mean Girls, “he doesn’t even go here.”

25
Reply
Kirk
Kirk
20 days ago
Reply to  Allison

You seem like such a delight.

1
Reply
UWS Dad
UWS Dad
21 days ago
Reply to  Allison

He was unjustly imprisoned so yes it’s good he was released even if you don’t agree with his views on Israel. The constitution protects unpopular speech of all residents, popular speech doesn’t need protections!

30
Reply
JODY GRECO
JODY GRECO
21 days ago
Reply to  Allison

Oh come on, Alison. And he does go to Columbia and you know it

17
Reply
Simone
Simone
21 days ago
Reply to  Allison

have a blessed day lmao

5
Reply
Tim
Tim
21 days ago
Reply to  Allison

He has graduated and needs to move on with his life. Columbia needs to keep him off the campus for his previous damage, and the NYPD needs to control crowds outside the gates. Enough is enough.

19
Reply
ecm
ecm
21 days ago
Reply to  Tim

Needs to move on with his life? Gentle reminder: Khalil is merely out on bail while the DHS continues maneuvering to deport this legal U.S. resident for the horrific crime of unapproved speech or, failing that, unreported activism. This being, supposedly, America, land of the free, home of the whatever.
Maybe the Krasnov regime should move on. It’s not as if there’s any shortage of other innocent, law-abiding immigrants — and U.S. citizens! — to pick on.

7
Reply
Sby
Sby
20 days ago
Reply to  ecm

Krasnov regime? Nobody even knows what ur talking about—u do know ecm Trump has got u responding to him like he’s a Wrestlemania villain—if Trump said breathing is good u would be against breathing—he’s made u completely irrational

1
Reply
Christof
Christof
21 days ago
Reply to  Tim

Columbia’s damage is entirely self-inflicted. Wishy washy spineless institution.

19
Reply
Manhattan parent
Manhattan parent
21 days ago

“ the current, apparently attracted to Khalifa’s necklace…”

Lightning is not attracted to metal though it does conduct it. The lightning struck the tree and electricity from a lightning strike traveled through the metal necklace.

9
Reply
Bob
Bob
21 days ago
Reply to  Manhattan parent

I seem to remember in elementary school that one should never stand under a tree in an electrical storm since the tree can function as an attraction.

1
Reply
Rob
Rob
21 days ago

I’ve been saying the pier and docks on the West Harlem Piers Park need to be repaired. It was only a matter of time before there were injuries. the one dock is completely gone. They were destroyed years ago in a storm and have been neglected by the city for years.

Last edited 21 days ago by Rob
1
Reply
OPOD
OPOD
21 days ago

Mahmoud Khalil, should not make plans for a NYC New Years Eve, He will be in his home Country. Good Bye Good Riddance.

5
Reply
NYCer
NYCer
21 days ago

Small correction: Polls are open Election Day Tuesday June 24 from 6am to 9pm (not 8pm). Regardless, please vote!

2
Reply
mamc
mamc
20 days ago

The polls are open until 9:00 pm, not 8!

0
Reply

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