Coleman, one of 14 people who survived after the boat went underwater, told CNN affiliate KOLR that she was screaming but that she could not hear or see anyone else. She was aboard 10 members of her family, according to KOLR
"And I was screaming, I was screaming, and finally I said," Lord, let me die, let me die, "I say. can not continue to drown, I can not continue to drown, "she told KOLR
" And then I let myself go and I started floating, I floated to # At the top, the temperature increases to warm up, "she said." And then I felt the temperature rising, I jumped and saw the big boat that is there, "she spotted a docked boat moored nearby.
People were throwing lifejackets Rock Lake near Branson's tourist mecca in Missouri was deteriorated quickly after a storm that had crossed the Midwest earlier Thursday morning with heavy gusts.
Another Ride the Ducks boat was nearby, in front of a Coleman was on:
"We got out and we got to the ramp, and I turned around and watched the other boat dive, and my heart dropped," says pbadenger Kourtney Parker. Moments before the sinking of the duck ” data-src-mini=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-small-169.jpg” data-src-xsmall=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-medium-plus-169.jpg” data-src-small=”http://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-large-169.jpg” data-src-medium=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-exlarge-169.jpg” data-src-large=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-super-169.jpg” data-src-full16x9=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-full-169.jpg” data-src-mini1x1=”//cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720052007-duck-boat-sinking-missouri-07202018-small-11.jpg” data-demand-load=”not-loaded” data-eq-pts=”mini: 0, xsmall: 221, small: 308, medium: 461, large: 781″ src=”data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhEAAJAJEAAAAAAP///////wAAACH5BAEAAAIALAAAAAAQAAkAAAIKlI+py+0Po5yUFQA7″/>
The spectators were desperately trying to help the duck that began to sink in 40 feet of water. One group took a woman out unconscious of water. An off duty policeman plunged into the rough waters
There were lifejackets on the boat, but Stone County Sheriff, Doug Rader, said that he did not know if people were wearing them .
1 to 70 years old, deceased. According to KOLR, there were 11 members of Coleman's family on board – only two survived.
Investigators are now looking into the accident, including weather, lifejacket situation, boat and crew actions, officials from the National Transportation Safety Board and the Coast Guard said:
Friday morning, the 17 bodies were found, the lieutenant-colonel of the US Coast Guard. Tasha Sadowicz says.
The Coast Guard will investigate, said Sgt. Jason Pace of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, who helps. An NTSB team was scheduled to visit the site on Friday
The NTSB, on Twitter, asked the public for help with photos or videos of the sinking.
According to weather data, the storm traveled hundreds of miles at 55 mph before striking the lake [19659002] The area around Branson was placed under a strong thunderstorm warning shortly after 6:30 pm (7:30 pm ET), about half an hour before the boat sank.
Radar shows first gusts of wind arriving at the lake before the storm, at 18:59
There were reports of damage throughout Stone County, including trees and structural damage, meteorologist CNN Taylor Ward said . The storm was part of the same high-level weather system that spawned destructive tornadoes on Thursday in Iowa, the northern neighbor of Missouri.
Authorities received the first 911 call about the storm. it sank at 7:09, said the sheriff.
In July, the company organizes tours that depart every 30 minutes from 8:30 am to 6 pm. A visit takes about 70 minutes, with about half on the ground and half on the water, says the company's website.
A mechanical problem on another boat probably delayed the start of his tour.
& # 39; These poor people, oh no! & # 39;
Jennie Phillips-Hudson Carr, was on the neighboring Showboat Branson Belle, a riverboat moored near the sinking ship.
The video that she recorded shows at least three ships on the lake, including the two Ride the Ducks boats that tilt and tilt to the side as wrinkles turn into mbadive waves. . [19659992] Rescue workers patrol an area Friday near where the duck sank to Table Rock Lake "data-src-mini =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919 -08-branson-missouri-tour-boat-accident-small-169.jpg "data-src-xsmall =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919-08-branson-missouri-tour- boat-accident-medium-plus-169.jpg "data-src-small =" http://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919-08-branson-missouri-tour-boat-accident-large -169.jpg "data-src-medium =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919-08-branson-missouri-tour-boat-accident-exlarge-169.jpg "data-src- wide = "// cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919-08-branson-missouri-tour-boat-accident-super-169.jpg" data-src-full16x9 = "// cdn.cnn. http://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/badets/180720111919 com / cnnnext / dam / badets / 180720111919-08-branson-missouri -08-branson-missouri-tour-boat-crash-small-11.jpg "data-demand-load =" not-loaded "data -eq-pts = "mini: 0, xsmall: 221, small: 308, medium: 461, large: 781" src = "data: image / gif; base64, R0lGODlhEAAJAJEAAAAAAP /////// wAAACH5BAEAAAIALAAAAAAQAAkAAAIKlI + py + 0Po5yUFQA7 "/>
"Oh God, these poor people, oh no!" Someone on the video says that the water crashes in the smaller boats, and that one starts to sink.
"If there are children there, these poor babies," says a female voice
Rader said: [traduction]
Among those killed, there was the driver, Robert "Bob" Williams, said his widow, Judy Williams
. Captain of the boat, whose name was not immediately released – was among the survivors and was taken to the hospital, Pattison said.
"It Should Never End That Way"
Ripley Entertainment said that it recently acquired the boat company. The boat had a captain and a driver with a commercial license, he said.
"Obviously, we should not be out there in violent weather," said Pattison. The company has been in operation for 47 years without any incident like this, he said.
When asked if pbadengers and two crew members had time to put on lifejackets, Pattison replied, "We do not know yet."
" People are expected to go out for an outing "
The Showboat crew and pbadengers rushed for
Two pbadengers on the Branson Belle Showboat, Trent Behr and his girlfriend, Allison Lester, described what they saw when they appeared on ABC's "Good Morning America" on Friday. .
Lester said the weather was mild on Thursday. But as Behr and she were boarding the boat-restaurant, "the wind really got worse and debris was flying everywhere," she said
while they were visiting the restaurant-boat, the couple looked at the window and saw canoes
"It was maybe two minutes later, and we heard the captain say that the boat had rocked or the boat sank, "said Behr.
Behr stated that at one point, he and other pbadengers of the diner had Helped shoot a woman unaware of the water, paramedics arrived before he could administer CPR, he said.
Among the rescuers was a Deputy Sheriff of Branson Belle who "jumped in and helped," said Rader, the sheriff of Stone County.
Ducks are amphibious vessels that travel both on land and in water and are popular among tourists in major cities. The history of the boats goes back to the Second World War, when these boats were a common sight because of their versatility.
In Branson, they are driven along the streets of the city for part of the tour before the driver uses a ramp to enter the lake.
Pattison said that he did not know when the boat sentenced – or the one just opposite Parker, who was on the duck to the front, told CNN that both ships had delayed their entry in the lake. but our propeller stopped working, so we had to wait 15 to 20 minutes for a rescue bus, which made us back off and that (other) boat, because we were in front of them, and they had to wait for us.
After the boats went into the water, she said, they were "about half way to the lake, and then, bam, everything happened so fast," she said. "We were literally under the water a few times."
Pattison said that he thought it was calm when the boats went into the water.
"Coming back, that's when … the waves rose, and then obviously submerged The driver was" the most calm mind you can ever meet "
Williams The driver was a caring man who was friendly to everyone, said his widow. CNN.
"He was talking to no matter who, he was doing a great deal on his life, he was giving his life for someone," she said Friday in an emotional phone interview . "It's the kind of man Robert was,"
His grandson, Victor Richardson, told CNN: "He was a God-fearing man, he was very humble, it was the most calm mind you could meet. 19659002] Bob and Judy Williams were married for more than 30 years and lived in Branson, according to the grandson.
Our hearts are broken & # 39;
Ride the Branson Ducks said that he was deeply saddened and that the case would be closed "while we support the investigation, and that we leave time to cry for the families and the community. "
" Words can not say how deeply our hearts are buried, "he said in a statement posted on his website. We will continue to do everything possible to help the families who have been involved and the authorities in their pursuit of search and rescue.
Branson, a popular destination for family vacations, is about 200 miles southeast of Kansas City.
Dakin Andone of CNN, Amanda Watts, Joe Sutton, Gianluca Mezzofiore, Judson Jones, Brandon Miller, Deanna Hackney, Marlena Baldacci and Sheena Jones contributed to this report.
