Table Rock Lake duck boat accident
 | This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. (July 2018) |
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| Date | 19 July 2018 |
|---|---|
| Time | Around 19:00 (CST) |
| Location | Table Rock Lake, Missouri, United States |
| Cause | Inclement weather |
| Participants | 31 |
| Deaths | 17 |
The Table Rock Lake duck boat accident was an incident that occurred in the evening hours of July 19, 2018 on Table Rock Lake in the Ozarks near Branson, Missouri, in which a duck boat, with thirty-one passengers aboard, overturned during a thunderstorm, resulting in seventeen deaths.[1]
Background
Duck boats are a modification of vehicles typically used by the United States military during the later years of World War II and the Korean War.[2] After the Korean War ended, the vehicles became available in surplus and a veteran in Minnesota began a business giving rides aboard the vessels to tourists on the Wisconsin River. Over the last fifty years, the practice has expanded to other areas of the world and several major cities in the United States feature duck boat tours as an option for tourists, including Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C..[3]
Accident
The accident occurred shortly after 7 PM local time on Thursday, July 19, 2018, as a line of thunderstorms moved across the region. The National Weather Service reports that winds in the area at the time were in excess of 60 miles per hour and the storm over the lake was moving "very quickly" and causing "three-foot waves on the lake".[1] The first 911 call was received at 7:09 PM as the boat was already going under the water, according to the local sheriff.[4] Local officials reported the following morning that all passengers and crew aboard the vessel had been accounted for and confirmed a total of seventeen deaths.[5]
References
- ^ a b Joyce, Kathleen. "Missouri duck boat capsizes in lake amid violent storm; children among several dead". Fox News. Retrieved 2018-07-20.
- ^ Laud, Georgina. "Missouri boat tragedy: 13 dead - What is a duck boat? Are they dangerous?". Express. Retrieved 2018-07-20.
- ^ "Branson duck boat accident: What exactly happened in Missouri tragedy". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-07-20.
- ^ Hulsey, Joel. "Branson duck boat tragedy: 17 dead, all passengers accounted for". KSDK.com. Tegna, Inc. Retrieved 2018-07-20.
- ^ "Branson duck boat accident: What exactly happened in Missouri tragedy". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-07-20.