When salvage crews raised Stretch Duck 07 some 80 feet from the floor of Table Rock Lake in Branson, Missouri, four days after it sank, two small American flags were still flying from the front and rows of orange life jackets were still dangling from the cabin top. None of the 17 people who were killed – or the 14 who survived – when the duck boat went down in a sudden storm were wearing a life jacket. One survivor told CNN that just before the boat entered the water from the launch ramp, the captain told them there were three sizes of life jackets on boat, “but you won’t need them.”
That was just one of many problems surrounding the tragedy, which killed nine members of one Indiana family on vacation. This particular boat, one of 22 in the Branson area fleet, had side curtains that were dropped in bad weather, making it hard for people to get out of the boat as it swamped and sank. The boat also had design and safety issues that may have contributed to the sinking. Amphibious duck boats in general, which were built in the Second World War, fall under various jurisdictions, namely the Coast Guard when they’re on the water and the Department of Transportation when they’re on land.
Stretch Duck 07 was built in 1944. Fox News reported that the former owner of Ride The Ducks, the company operating the Branson fleet, said in a court deposition last year that he taught himself how to rebuild and maintain the boats even though he did not have any engineering or mechanical training. He sold the company in 2004.
Last August, a company interested in buying the business hired Steven Paul, the owner of an inspection company in the St. Louis area, to examine the boats. He told Fox that he found massive design flaws and safety issues. He specifically warned that the engine and bilge pumps might fail in bad weather, with water entering the exhaust system, killing the engine and pumps.
The Coast Guard requires annual inspections of duck boats. The last one was in February. The Coast Guard then issues a “certificate of inspection” that places limits on when boats can enter the water based on wind and sea state – the height of waves. The Branson area came under a severe thunderstorm warning about half an hour before the boat sank; the highest recorded wind gusts reached 63 mph.
The Coast Guard is investigating whether the boat operators violated Coast Guard rules by going out on the lake, and whether the captain followed company guidelines on the use of life jackets.
County Sheriff Doug Rader said he believed the tragedy “was caused by weather.” Jim Pattison, Jr. president of the company that now owns the duck boat tours, said the squall “came out of nowhere.” Then, he added, “obviously we shouldn’t be out there in severe weather.” For more:
