https://cbsnews3.cbsistatic.com/hub/...7/20/d3d24852-
836e-450d-889b-
574fb1e9e1ff/resize/270x/593c1a01cdc78661a41197623517c73b/slack-
imgs.jpg

Nine of the 17 people who died in a duck boat accident were from
the same family, a spokesperson for Missouri Gov. Mike Parson
said Friday. Another two members of the same family survived
when the boat capsized on Table Rock Lake near the tourist town
of Branson, the spokesperson said. Officials have not yet
identified the victims.

In their initial assessment, authorities blamed severe
thunderstorms and winds that approached hurricane strength. A
full investigation was underway.

The boat was carrying 29 passengers and two crew members on a
pleasure cruise, and everyone aboard had been accounted for by
midday Friday. Seven of the 14 survivors were hurt when the
vessel went down. At least two were hospitalized in critical
condition. The captain survived, authorities said.

The weather service station in Springfield, about 40 miles north
of Branson, issued a severe thunderstorm watch for its immediate
area Thursday, saying conditions were ripe for winds of 70 mph.
It followed up at 6:32 p.m. with a severe thunderstorm warning
for three counties that included Branson and the lake. The
warning mentioned both locations. The boat went down about 40
minutes later, shortly after 7 p.m. Nine minutes later, 911
received the first call for help.

"When we issue a warning, it means take action," meteorologist
Kelsey Angle said.

Jim Pattison Jr., the president of Ripley Entertainment, which
owns the duck boat tour company involved in the incident, told
"CBS This Morning" on Friday the boat "shouldn't have been in
the water."

"I don't have all the details, but to answer your question, no,
it shouldn't have been in the water if, if what happened,
happened," he said when asked why the tour continued in such
rough conditions.

Pattison said the duck boat had life jackets onboard but
Missouri law doesn't require people to wear them.

"Usually the lake is very placid, and it's not a long tour,"
Pattison said. "They go in and kind of around an island and
back, and we had other boats in the water earlier, and it had
been a very sort of calm experience up until this came very
suddenly."

Mayor Karen Best identified the crew member driving the boat as
Bob Williams, known informally as "Captain Bob," and said he was
a great ambassador for the city. "He was at every event. He knew
everyone. He was always promoting Branson," she said.

Named for their ability to travel on land and in water, duck
boats have been involved in other serious accidents in the past,
including the deaths of more than 40 people since 1999.

Five college students were killed in 2015 in Seattle when a duck
boat collided with a bus. Thirteen people died in 1999 when a
boat sank near Hot Springs, Arkansas.

"Duck boats are death traps," said Andrew Duffy, an attorney
whose Philadelphia law firm handled litigation related to two
fatal duck boat accidents there. "They're not fit for water or
land because they are half car and half boat."

Safety advocates have sought improvements and complained that
too many agencies regulate the boats with varying safety
requirements. The boats were originally designed for the
military, specifically to transport troops and supplies in World
War II. They were later modified for use as sightseeing vehicles.

Divers quickly located the vessel, which came to rest on its
wheels on the lake bed, and authorities planned to recover it
later Friday.

The boat sank in 40 feet of water and then rolled on its wheels
into a deeper area with 80 feet of water. Investigators had no
information about whether passengers were wearing life jackets
or whether they were stowed aboard, the sheriff said.

The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) planned to help with the investigation.

Branson, about 200 miles southeast of Kansas City, is a country-
themed tourist mecca built on a reputation for patriotic and
religious-themed shows in numerous theaters. Table Rock Lake,
east of Branson, was created in the late 1950s when the Corps of
Army Engineers built a dam across the White River to provide
hydroelectric power to the Ozarks.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/duck-bo...nson-missouri-
most-victims-from-one-family-2018-07-20/

On Sat, 21 Jul 2018 04:11:19 +0200 (CEST), "Black Lies Matter..."
wrote:

https://cbsnews3.cbsistatic.com/hub/...7/20/d3d24852-
836e-450d-889b-
574fb1e9e1ff/resize/270x/593c1a01cdc78661a41197623517c73b/slack-
imgs.jpg

Nine of the 17 people who died in a duck boat accident were from
the same family, a spokesperson for Missouri Gov. Mike Parson
said Friday. Another two members of the same family survived
when the boat capsized on Table Rock Lake near the tourist town
of Branson, the spokesperson said. Officials have not yet
identified the victims.

In their initial assessment, authorities blamed severe
thunderstorms and winds that approached hurricane strength. A
full investigation was underway.

The boat was carrying 29 passengers and two crew members on a
pleasure cruise, and everyone aboard had been accounted for by
midday Friday. Seven of the 14 survivors were hurt when the
vessel went down. At least two were hospitalized in critical
condition. The captain survived, authorities said.

The weather service station in Springfield, about 40 miles north
of Branson, issued a severe thunderstorm watch for its immediate
area Thursday, saying conditions were ripe for winds of 70 mph.
It followed up at 6:32 p.m. with a severe thunderstorm warning
for three counties that included Branson and the lake. The
warning mentioned both locations. The boat went down about 40
minutes later, shortly after 7 p.m. Nine minutes later, 911
received the first call for help.

"When we issue a warning, it means take action," meteorologist
Kelsey Angle said.

Jim Pattison Jr., the president of Ripley Entertainment, which
owns the duck boat tour company involved in the incident, told
"CBS This Morning" on Friday the boat "shouldn't have been in
the water."

"I don't have all the details, but to answer your question, no,
it shouldn't have been in the water if, if what happened,
happened," he said when asked why the tour continued in such
rough conditions.

Pattison said the duck boat had life jackets onboard but
Missouri law doesn't require people to wear them.

"Usually the lake is very placid, and it's not a long tour,"
Pattison said. "They go in and kind of around an island and
back, and we had other boats in the water earlier, and it had
been a very sort of calm experience up until this came very
suddenly."

Mayor Karen Best identified the crew member driving the boat as
Bob Williams, known informally as "Captain Bob," and said he was
a great ambassador for the city. "He was at every event. He knew
everyone. He was always promoting Branson," she said.

Named for their ability to travel on land and in water, duck
boats have been involved in other serious accidents in the past,
including the deaths of more than 40 people since 1999.

Five college students were killed in 2015 in Seattle when a duck
boat collided with a bus. Thirteen people died in 1999 when a
boat sank near Hot Springs, Arkansas.

"Duck boats are death traps," said Andrew Duffy, an attorney
whose Philadelphia law firm handled litigation related to two
fatal duck boat accidents there. "They're not fit for water or
land because they are half car and half boat."

Safety advocates have sought improvements and complained that
too many agencies regulate the boats with varying safety
requirements. The boats were originally designed for the
military, specifically to transport troops and supplies in World
War II. They were later modified for use as sightseeing vehicles.

Divers quickly located the vessel, which came to rest on its
wheels on the lake bed, and authorities planned to recover it
later Friday.

The boat sank in 40 feet of water and then rolled on its wheels
into a deeper area with 80 feet of water. Investigators had no
information about whether passengers were wearing life jackets
or whether they were stowed aboard, the sheriff said.

The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) planned to help with the investigation.

Branson, about 200 miles southeast of Kansas City, is a country-
themed tourist mecca built on a reputation for patriotic and
religious-themed shows in numerous theaters. Table Rock Lake,
east of Branson, was created in the late 1950s when the Corps of
Army Engineers built a dam across the White River to provide
hydroelectric power to the Ozarks.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/duck-bo...nson-missouri-
most-victims-from-one-family-2018-07-20/

This borders on negligent homicide. That boat had no business leaving
the dock with that weather forecast.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...721-story.html

Besides bad weather the capt made at least 2 fatal calls. Proceeding in bad weather and ignore the use if safety apparatus

Those 2nd world war versions look Mickey Mouse compared to the Viet Nam war era versions they use in our harbour.
Funny...they look big winding their way along narrow downtown streets but kind of puny out on the Water.

On Sat, 21 Jul 2018 07:14:31 -0700 (PDT), True North
wrote:

they look big winding their way along narrow downtown streets but kind of puny out on the Water.

===

The same holds true for most boats.

The way that thing was taking water over the bow, I was surprised that
it stayed afloat as long as it did.