MO - Duck boat carrying 31 tourists capsizes, killing 17, near Branson, July 2018

[drama_farmer]

There were two of these duck boats out in that storm. I'm curious what made the difference between one arriving safely on shore and the other becoming a terrifying death ride.

 

[CARIIS]

I saw the owner of the boat company on tv this evening. He claimed that the storm came out of "nowhere" which is total nonsense. A severe thunderstorm warning had been issued for the area a half an hour before. No operator of a tourist boat like this should be without a phone that has a radar ap. The loop was played and a severe thunderstorm was shown on the radar app bearing down on the lake. No one in his right mind would have left the dock after seeing that.

I constantly hear about coaches, athletic directors, school officials, etc, who start outdoor ball games only to have them washed out or something worse happen and then later claim that they didn't know about the weather. In this age of handheld radar machines there is no excuse for not knowing when a severe storm is getting close.

I think what we really need is

-looking up into the sky while boarding what did everyone see and feel?

-exact time of land portion before entry into water

-at water entry what did the sky above look like

-what is the known time on the water during water portion

- when looking up while on the thing , in the water, did the sky look like

--at all times timewise how far away were they from an exit ramp

-in exact time when did it appear storm clouds were actually in moving and how fast they were coming

- when did the crews decide to head to land (was it reasonable knowing the boats the route etc etc the time needed to get to the ramp)

without these specifics IMO --a weather entity warning for two days nasty weather might be coming while the city is strolling around in bright blew skies changes choices behaviors and decisions

I would think that having three staff members available to talk to on the two boats will give us a realistic timeline of what happened when etcetc

 

[stg]

There were two of these duck boats out in that storm. I'm curious what made the difference between one arriving safely on shore and the other becoming a terrifying death ride.

I read in a news story yesterday that the second boat had fewer passengers than the one that sank. That could have been a contributing factor.

One of the boats was closer to shore, while one was farther out, but I never saw it confirmed which one sank, so not sure that was a factor. It looked like the one closer to shore was actually taking on more water. Does anyone know?

 

[Jax49]

I read in a news story yesterday that the second boat had fewer passengers than the one that sank. That could have been a contributing factor.

One of the boats was closer to shore, while one was farther out, but I never saw it confirmed which one sank, so not sure that was a factor. It looked like the one closer to shore was actually taking on more water. Does anyone know?

The one closest to shore made it, per the sheriff. About the 30 second mark.

Video shows the last moments before a duck boat sinks in Missouri - CNN

ETA: Or NOT. The article states the second boat made it.

The video suddenly stops
The video ends abruptly with the boats still struggling to overcome the waves.
Officials would later say the second duck boat dangerously churned up and down through the waves but made it to shore. The first boat capsized around 7 p.m.
By early Friday, Carr had removed the video from her Facebook page.

 

[jggordo]

The one closest to shore made it, per the sheriff. About the 30 second mark.

Video shows the last moments before a duck boat sinks in Missouri - CNN

ETA: Or NOT. The article states the second boat made it.

The big boat came back to dock first. In was in the way of the second boat (1st duck boat) to dock right away. The Captain of boat 1st duck boat radioed Captain of 1st boat to get out of the way. So duck boat #1 made it in to dock, but with delay of I don't know how long. Duck boat #2 was in behind #1 unable to get to dock until that boat disembarked and got out of way. High winds pushed duck boat two back out further into the lake since it was not docked.

This is from many interviews from this area. Our local ABC station has a co-anchor there.

JMU

 

[Jax49]

‘Grab the baby!’: Duck boat tragedy kills nine members of the same family

The Coleman family had initially thought of going on a vacation to Florida for their annual trip, but the drive was too long for some elderly relatives. They settled on going to Branson, a southwestern Missouri town about seven hours away from their hometown of Indianapolis. They rented a van and on Tuesday, the family of 11 from three generations of Colemans headed out for what would be their last vacation together.

 

[gitana1]

Realistically living in MO we outrun most storms, otherwise we would only be able to go out and do things half of the time. When the forecasters say storm watch we don't just sit around watching. This storm from the other day was forewarned for sure, but when they switch over to storm warning is when we really start watching.

JMO

That makes sense but for me the issue is how unnavigable these vessels are and that they've been described as death traps.

We've all seen the video. Those things are horrible. They can hardly function.

For that reason and the fact that they involve passengers, extreme caution should be taken, IMO, including never going out when the possibility of storms are forecast.

If that means you can't run a profitable business, so be it. Get different vessels. Those things look super dangerous. They shouldn't be on the water unless calm water is guaranteed. Not with passengers.

 

[gitana1]

There were two of these duck boats out in that storm. I'm curious what made the difference between one arriving safely on shore and the other becoming a terrifying death ride.

Both were struggling hard and one was lucky it made it to shore.

 

[stg]

I am not sure I agree Here the forecasts are often widely overblown and a form of desensitization occurs

Well maybe this story will make people wake up and take notice. If a warning is issued, there are certain factors that have to be met by the storm or the warning will not be issued. You may not end up experiencing those particular factors even if you are in the path of the storm, but they are occurring somewhere. I live in a severe weather state too, so I know how these storms behave sometimes.

I understand people who experience these storms all the time might tend to not take these warnings seriously, but a boat company sure has to! They have the lives of their paying customers at stake. The president of the company himself said the boats should not have been out there.

Interesting article I found today about the Wisconsin Dells Ducks, which have been around forever with no major incidents. If they see red on the radar, they don’t run the boats, even though their waterways are different and less likely to be as rough. Wisconsin gets plenty of severe weather in the spring and summer:

Wisconsin Dells 'duck boat' companies say their tour boats are safe

 

[gregjrichards]

This is the hero captain who calmly steered his packed duck boat to shore during the deadly storm that sunk a colleague's vehicle and killed 17 day trippers.

Barry King was skippering one of two Ride The Ducks Branson amphibious boats that were caught in an intense squall Thursday evening on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Missouri.

The slow-moving vessels were as little as 125 yards apart but while King made it safely to shore, he and his passengers could only look on in horror as his colleague's boat vanished beneath 4ft waves.

Hero captain of second Missouri duck boat which survived storm speaks out | Daily Mail Online

 

[IceIce9]

Several members of Indiana family among those killed in Branson duck boat accident

Link to story where the survivor who lost nine family members mentions life jackets.

 

[jggordo]

Even before this happened I would not step foot on board one of these duck boats, even on a duck pond. We also have The Lake Of The Ozarks here in MO and even without this storm, an inconsiderate speed boater can create wicked wakes and waves that other boats must be aware of and handle. These ducks should be outlawed and maybe put in museums. Most people who get on these boats are curious about the fact that they are amphibious more than anything.

 

[vulture]

I know Ride the Ducks in the Branson area have been around for a long time. I think they were around when my kids were little around 30-35 years ago. I don't know of any history of accidents in Branson, but I haven't lived in the area for a while.

I remember riding one at Table Rock Lake in the 1970s. It was neat when I was a kid just to see one because they are unusual looking.

 

[stg]

A couple more pertinent, might I even say damning, articles found tonight:

Doomed Missouri duck boat set out in near-hurricane winds: NTSB

Missouri duck boat accident: Inspector warned company of design flaws last year

 

[jggordo]

UPDATE: Coast Guard: Duck boat was inspected in February

BRANSON (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says a duck boat that sank on a Missouri lake in an accident that killed 17 people was built during World War II and had passed an inspection in February.

The Kansas City Star reports that the Coast Guard said the craft was the 33-foot-long Stretch Duck 07 built in 1944.

Lt. Tasha Sadowicz is with the Coast Guard's regional office in St. Louis. She says a majority of the 22 Stretch Ducks operating in Missouri were built in 1944 or 1945.

OMG !! So how many more of these death traps are licensed to be on the water in MO now?

JMO

 

[rabidstoat]

A side note, I see a lot of interviews from Tia Coleman, the lady who lost 9 family members. I know that it's not like the media is forcing her to give interviews or anything, and it's even probable that she wants to talk as she tries to process everything, but I feel so bad for the poor lady. She's obviously in shock, and her decision to go on TV for an interview isn't being made from the best of mental states. I wish the media would leave the poor woman alone so she grieve in private, I just feel bad for her.

 

[gregjrichards]

Tragic last picture of family that lost nine members on the Missouri duck boat is released as initial investigation says trip left in 'hurricane-force' winds and mother says they were warned there would be a bad storm

Tragic last picture of family that lost nine members on the Missouri duck boat | Daily Mail Online

I just can’t get my head around taking the boat out knowing a bad storm was coming and even going to the extent of warning passengers. It’s negligence putting people in danger like this.

 

[gitana1]

A couple more pertinent, might I even say damning, articles found tonight:

Doomed Missouri duck boat set out in near-hurricane winds: NTSB

Missouri duck boat accident: Inspector warned company of design flaws last year

There was an interview with a man who said he and his wife were supposed to get on the boat but due to the weather decided against it and got a refund.

It is clear that the weather situation was known before the boat set out.

 

[gitana1]

View attachment 139455

Tragic last picture of family that lost nine members on the Missouri duck boat is released as initial investigation says trip left in 'hurricane-force' winds and mother says they were warned there would be a bad storm

Tragic last picture of family that lost nine members on the Missouri duck boat | Daily Mail Online

I just can’t get my head around taking the boat out knowing a bad storm was coming and even going to the extent of warning passengers. It’s negligence putting people in danger like this.

I think they probably aren't very trained boat operators and the company probably has a policy to try not to cancel so they don't lose revenue.

Profits over people.

 

[jggordo]

I am sure wrongful death attorneys are running each other off the road trying to get to her and other victim's families to file suits. Less than a week gone by and no funerals as yet but the money and greed has already begun. I saw where a account has already been set up to help with funerals expenses. A goal of $500,000 for funerals...sheesh? Sad on top of sad.

JMO