17 people killed when duck boat sinks during storm in Missouri, police say

[DonViejo]

By Mark Berman, Allyson Chiu and Samantha Schmidt
July 20 at 12:32 PM

The duck boat was coasting through the waters of Table Rock Lake on Thursday night when the weather began to pick up. It had been a nice summer day in southern Missouri, recalled one person who was on a nearby boat, before the storm suddenly moved in.

A damaging thunderstorm quickly roared across the lake near Branson, Mo., that regularly draws crowds to tour boats and languid cruises. It delivered the punishing rain and pummeling winds forecasters had warned could be coming. The waves began to churn, rocking a duck boat that had set out with 31 people — 29 passengers and two crew members. Gripping video footage from the lake showed the boat seesawing in the water, pounded by waves that just kept coming.

The storm was too much for the small boat, which eventually capsized and sank, plunging to the bottom of the lake and killing 17 people, some of them children. “It’s been a long night, been a very trying night,” Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told reporters.

Authorities rushed to the area to try to rescue the people thrust into the water, seven of whom were brought to an area hospital. While officials initially said four people were still missing Friday morning, they warned that the scale of the tragedy could grow, as Rader said authorities were in “recovery mode for the bodies we’re still missing” rather than continuing search and rescue efforts. A short time later, he confirmed that they had found the final four bodies.

More than half of those on board the boat had been killed.

more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/07/19/at-least-8-reported-dead-as-duck-boat-capsizes-near-branson-mo-divers-search-for-survivors/

[imanamerican63]

1. Just horrible and sad.

[Cirque du So-What]

2. Perhaps it's too early for this discussion...

Isn't the tour boat company culpable? It's the 21st century, so weather information is readily available. I won't be surprised if this company gets sued out of existence and, from my layperson's perspective, criminal charges are filed.

[procon]

3. Scary video was shown on MSNBC, all those people were in sheer terror.

Mr procon and I rented a small motorboat to go fishing at a lake in the nearby mountains. A violent wind storm came up very suddenly and without warning, and the water quickly became choppy and big swells were washing over the side and sheets of hard rain threatening to swamp the little boat.

We were a long way from shore and the motor wasn't very strong so it was slow going as we headed back in to the dock. I was bailing water out of the boat with a plastic drink cup and yelling at DH to go faster, and it was one of the most frightening incidents in my life, I really thought we wouldn't make it.