Duck boat sinks in Branson, at least 13 dead

[jimmyjazz 45962]

Aren't kids supposed to be wearing life jackets anyway?

[Dewey 3286]

Youd think lifejackets were mandatory, I've floated the Delaware with literally a foot of water and the game warden got on me about not wearing my lifejacket.

[michaelpshayes 417]

I read an article a few minutes ago about one of these boats sinking in 1999, said that people were pinned to the boat canopy because of their life jackets ....13 died....said it filled up with water in a matter of seconds

Transportation safety board recommended that they have a secondary way of the boat staying afloat (no idea what that is) ...but, recommendations weren't followed 

and this company was run out of Pennsylvania after a couple of incidents 

[Orca of Peace 109]

i rarely have boated in my life but in Hawaii whale watching on a big 2 story boat, the captain turned 90 degrees to avoid like 3-4 foot waves about 50 yards in front. I was thinking "that's a smart man aware of the situation". This guy goes Titanic.

[DalTxHornFan 3102]

PI lawyer feeding frenzy beginning in 3,2,1.  This time, deservedly so.

[Aqua Buddha 14598]

38 minutes ago, 'stache said:

The canopy had to cause problems though.  If the boat sinks and they're caught under the canopy, I'm not sure a life jacket would help.

That's my guess as to what happened.  The boat started going down and the canopy trapped most of the people.  Even if they would have had lifejackets, it wouldn't have mattered.

[El Diablo 4232]

Dick butt capsized?

I need my glasses.

[Parliament 14260]

Turning around and going down wind to beach it wherever you hit shore. Could that boat have been able to survive the turn?

That boat looks like a deathtrap regardless. No outside deck of any kind.

And this vapid fat old people just sitting there eating and getting fatter. Wow.

[smuggs 9353]

6 minutes ago, Parliament said:

Turning around and going down wind to beach it wherever you hit shore. Could that boat have been able to survive the turn?
 

The other POS duck boat completes a successful U-turn rather easily at 2:30. But then he spins it back into oncoming waves and keeps on plowing into the maelstrom like the Edmund Fitzgerald. 

[Shmitty 112]

3 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

Given it's Branson, there were prolly a lot of fats, too, and they can't swim.

But they can sure float. 

[Deej 76800]

4 minutes ago, smuggs said:

The other POS duck boat completes a successful U-turn rather easily at 2:30. But then he spins it back into oncoming waves and keeps on plowing into the maelstrom like the Edmund Fitzgerald. 

Hopefully, we get a Gordon Lightfoot song out of this. 

[Stoogey 219]

1 hour ago, 'stache said:

The canopy had to cause problems though.  If the boat sinks and they're caught under the canopy, I'm not sure a life jacket would help.

 

48 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

That's my guess as to what happened.  The boat started going down and the canopy trapped most of the people.  Even if they would have had lifejackets, it wouldn't have mattered.

Are these WWII ducks or repros? The USCG recommended original DUKWs be fitted with air-tight compartments or have the hull filled with foam. Also easily removable canopies to prevent people from becoming trapped. Repro ducks should have been built to those standards. 

Were the people instructed to put on lifejackets at the first hint of a storm?

Riding duck boats is a lot of fun. But the emphasis is on the scenery, the novelty of amphibious vehicle and jokey narration. On a perfectly calm lake the WWII ducks are not responsive and clumsy. At one point the boat operator had a little boy steer the duck. while commenting, "You don't even know where we're going,"  to laughter. One tour takes the passengers through a DUKW graveyard. The tour company is constantly on the lookout for vintage DUKWs to scavenge parts to keep their fleet intact.



A modern duck in Alaska was a big improvement. I do not recall ever having a lifejacket demonstration. 

Edited July 20, 2018 by Stoogey
Goofed.

[phdhorn 6224]

6 minutes ago, Deej said:

Hopefully, we get a Gordon Lightfoot song out of this. 

Probably not that epic.  More like Bobby Goldsboro.

[Shmitty 112]

2 hours ago, midtown said:

I'd make it.  No doubt about it but I've also won numerous ocean and lake 1 and 2 mile swims.  And I know how to shed clothing asap.  And my kids are excellent swimmers.   I doubt anyone on that boat had that type of swim experience. 

Swam4Texas?

26 minutes ago, Parliament said:

Turning around and going down wind to beach it wherever you hit shore. Could that boat have been able to survive the turn?

That boat looks like a deathtrap regardless. No outside deck of any kind.

And this vapid fat old people just sitting there eating and getting fatter. Wow.

I found this part sickening.  How could they not at least attempt to do something to help?  Us Americans can be a selfish people.  

[El Diablo 4232]

6 minutes ago, phdhorn said:

Probably not that epic.  More like Bobby Goldsboro.

"Wreck Of The Duck Boat in Peril"

[Beau Vine 54238]

So has anyone seen how many survivors there were?  

[clapclapclap 9000]

11 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

So has anyone seen how many survivors there were?  

31 on board, 17 killed, 7 in the hospital, the rest accounted for.  So 14.  (Until the next tribal council.)

[Doc Reeves 6434]

So sad

 

Newsflash to people who don’t sail: Duckboats are death traps. 

[T’Boo Ted Marshall 2732]

Counter to survival instinct, not to mention there were olds and kids. 
Thoughts like: "The boat is the safe place, the water is scary. My kids are with me. I'm old and fat." doesn't lead to a lot of bail out and head for land with the water flow thoughts. 
 

I get that, but at some point you have to be aware of the situation. If you’re underwater you need to rerack and change the current course of action you’ve chosen.

[Aqua Buddha 14598]

1 hour ago, Shmitty said:

But they can sure float. 

Apparently not.

[po elvis 2072]

7 minutes ago, T’Boo Ted Marshall said:

I get that, but at some point you have to be aware of the situation. If you’re underwater you need to rerack and change the current course of action you’ve chosen.

If you are with family, I think your first thoughts are going to be to try and save them. When you do that, you don't have a shot for yourself. Even if I was by myself, I think I would automatically direct my energy to trying to save children or old people.

[Deej 76800]

I'm going full Costanza, if I'm by myself. 

[midtown 3346]

I've only been on one of those things ever and it was about 6 years ago in Seattle.  It was much smaller and much more open. 

[Richter 2260]

5 minutes ago, midtown said:

I've only been on one of those things ever and it was about 6 years ago in Seattle.  It was much smaller and much more open. 

Did you survive?

[smuggs 9353]

11 minutes ago, Richter said:

Did you survive?

He won the 2 mile open water swim back to the boat ramp.

[Lhorn 4914]

It bottles the mind that the operators thought they should go out or that the people chose to get on. I understand that they prob trusted the operators or thought the boat was more sea worthy than it was. 

Terrible and so easily preventable 

Edited July 20, 2018 by Lhorn

[Wally Pryor 5261]

One family had 11 members on board, 9 died. 

Ugh.

[North Austin 10]

1 hour ago, Doc Reeves said:

So sad

 

Newsflash to people who don’t sail: Duckboats are death traps. 

Apparently so.  Noted.

[phdhorn 6224]

39 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

Apparently not.

14 survived. Maybe they were the fat ones.

[Orca of Peace 109]

duckboat dynasty no more 

[Orca of Peace 109]

36 minutes ago, po elvis said:

If you are with family, I think your first thoughts are going to be to try and save them. When you do that, you don't have a shot for yourself. Even if I was by myself, I think I would automatically direct my energy to trying to save children or old people.

what about hot babes

[PRONG HORN 3146]

Third world bullshit right here.  17 die in capsizing event?  Here?   Duck boat owners are fucked.  

[TornACL 7698]

5 hours ago, Deej said:

I bet the sound of the duck calls dying out was haunting.

 

 

DAMN. This is terrible but it deserves a lot more love.

[po elvis 2072]

1 minute ago, PRONG HORN said:

Third world bullshit right here.  17 die in capsizing event?  Here?   Duck boat owners are fucked.  

i heard that Ripley bought them last year. believe it or not. 

[Stoogey 219]

26 minutes ago, midtown said:

I've only been on one of those things ever and it was about 6 years ago in Seattle.  It was much smaller and much more open. 

Didn't know Seattle has ducks. Surplus WWII DUKWs. 


 

1 hour ago, Doc Reeves said:

Newsflash to people who don’t sail: Duckboats are death traps. 

 “She’s not very fast, but she’s better in water than any truck and she’ll beat any boat on a highway!” – Roderic Stephens, Jr., naval architect.

[midtown 3346]

That definitely looks like it.  I don't remember it being that big but I was likely intoxicated "freemont rocks".    It definitely did not have that many people on it thats for sure.

[Pato del Muerto 52505]

2 hours ago, clapclapclap said:

31 on board, 17 killed, 7 in the hospital, the rest accounted for.  So 14.  (Until the next tribal council.)

31 men went into the water, chief. 14 come out. Sharks took the rest. 

Edited July 20, 2018 by Pato del Muerto
Lord forgive me

[El Diablo 4232]

If it was anything like the crowds I've seen on sunset "booze" cruises, many on that boat probably didn't even notice the weather and couldn't have helped themselves if they had wanted to.

[Orca of Peace 109]

probably thousands of duckboat rides annually across the country and one fatal error right?  It's safer than flying. 

OK, i'm not sure of the stats, but seriously though it's not THAT bad is it??

[phdhorn 6224]

8 minutes ago, Orca of Peace said:

probably thousands of duckboat rides annually across the country and one fatal error right?  It's safer than flying. 

OK, i'm not sure of the stats, but seriously though it's not THAT bad is it??

Apparently more people die every year in golf carts than duck boats, according to the Feds' stats. But they could have been skewed by Tiger Woods' ex chasing him around the course and indiscriminately running over hundreds in 2010.

Edited July 20, 2018 by phdhorn

[JimmyHoffa 1188]

5 minutes ago, Orca of Peace said:

probably thousands of duckboat rides annually across the country and one fatal error right?  It's safer than flying. 

OK, i'm not sure of the stats, but seriously though it's not THAT bad is it??

 

Well, you have a hell of a lot better chance of survival getting off a sinking boat then you do a plane crash so there's that. 

 

In all seriousness we were in Chicago last summer and were doing a boat tour on Lake Michigan as soon as we got away from Navy Pier the fog rolled in out of nowhere. The captain immediately apologized and said it wasn't safe, we turned around and were given a full refund. Don't fuck with mother nature especially when you have other people's lives in your hands.  

['stache 21817]

Did one of these in Hot Springs when I was young. I hope the industry survives because all it takes is an ounce of common sense to avoid this type of tragedy. The operator should go to prison for this.

[Sbbruin 21858]

They have one of these in Santa Barbara.  But you don't get these pop up storms there.  You'll know if the weather ain't right.

[Thetexashammer 1062]

13 people died in Hot Springs AR in 1999. I'd ban the damn things.

[midtown 3346]

3 hours ago, Shmitty said:

Swam4Texas?

No.  But I knew him at UT.  

[Beau Vine 54238]

2 hours ago, Wally Pryor said:

One family had 11 members on board, 9 died. 

Ugh.

So two of them went full Costanza?

[jimmyjazz 45962]

Didn't one of these go down a while back because the operator forgot to put in the drain plugs?

[Deej 76800]

18 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Didn't one of these go down a while back because the operator forgot to put in the drain plugs?

They let aggy run these things?

Edited July 20, 2018 by Deej

[RPM 26322]

4 hours ago, phdhorn said:

Probably not that epic.  More like Bobby Goldsboro.

crickets

[CooterBrown 18014]

My daughter drove the duck boat in Boston 6 years ago. Prayers for her.