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At least 11 people were killed when a duck capsized and sunk Thursday night in Missouri, plunging dozens of pbadengers into a lake near the tourist town of Branson and causing an unbridled search effort.
were children, Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told reporters in a briefing. Authorities warned that the scale of the tragedy could rise further, saying Friday morning that six people were still missing.
The boat had 31 people on board – 29 pbadengers and two crew members – when it sank in the waters of Table Rock Lake. Strong winds and thunderstorms, said Rader. Seven people were taken to the hospital, one of them having been seriously injured.
The first call to 911 regarding the sinking of a duck arrived just after 19 hours. On Thursday, officials said, starting a search effort long hours in the water.
"It's going to be all night in tomorrow," Rader said. "We will still work on that."
Among the pbadengers of the boat was a deputy sheriff, who immediately helped in the rescue effort, according to Rader.
The Missouri Highway Patrol Diving Team will take over The Friday morning search of a county dive team that marked the waters Thursday night, officials said. Federal investigators are also heading to the scene. The National Transportation Safety Board announced that it would send a team of "Go Team" investigators to the lake on Friday morning to investigate what happened.
Rader said the boat sank due to strong winds and thunderstorms. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the area during the sinking period of the ship
"The winds were behind what is called a" gust front " Meteorologist Mike Smith, meteorologist, said, "There were also strong winds with heavy rain on his arrival that would have reduced visibility to very low values." Gusts of up to 70 or 80 mph were reported at the time of the sinking, he writes.
The duck that sank was one of two still active during the storm, said Rader .The boats were returning to shore when the incident It's produced, he said.According to the Kansas City Star, some pbadengers of the capsized boat were able to swim up to the shore.
A video captured by spectators just before the night. incident shows two duck boats moving up and down through va
One of the boats is trailing behind the other, plunging into the waves. A speed boat can be seen behind the ducks.
"Oh my god, oh no," a woman is heard saying in the bottom of the video. "Someone needs to help them."
"This duck, I do not know if we will bring him back", a man is also heard on the video.
Another video was captured by a pbadenger inside the other duck boat, which made safe at the shore. Images of Paul Lemus published by local media show a number of adults and children inside the boat. The waves crash against the windows and the Branson Belle Showboat can be seen nearby, on the shore of the lake, near Table Rock State Park. According to the police, the appeal regarding the sinking of the duck revealed that he was near the Belle.
Video of a second boat of the & # 39; Ride The Ducks & # 39; who brought it back to shore safely. He was on the water at Table Rock Lake at the same time as the boat capsized. (Credit: Paul Lemus) pic.twitter.com/AKQmWfdoal
– Jason Boatright (@TheJasonBoat) July 20, 2018
The duck, who had lifejackets on board, was the property Ride the Ducks Branson, a tourism company that takes people to explore the Ozarks across the land and water using amphibious vehicles. Ride the Ducks is a national duck tour operator with several locations across the United States and Branson's operation was purchased last year by Ripley Entertainment, Suzanne Smagala-Potts, a spokeswoman for the company, at the Washington Post. to be seen in the cities of Washington in Seattle, have seen fatal accidents in the past in the water as well as on the land. In what could be the deadliest incident, 13 people died in 1999 after a duck boat suddenly started taking water during a visit to Hamilton Lake. in Hot Springs, Ark.
In 2015, a Ride the Ducks bus on the Aurora Bridge in Seattle and five students were killed. Dozens of people were also injured. Ride the Ducks International LLC agreed the following year to pay $ 1 million for breaking federal security regulations, according to the Seattle Times.
Smagala-Potts said the boat was sinking Thursday night. ducks to Branson. Smagala-Potts said, "We are deeply saddened by the tragic accident that occurred tonight at Ride The Ducks Branson," she said. . "This incident has deeply affected everyone of us, and we will continue to do everything we can to help families and authorities continue their search and rescue efforts."
The storm suddenly arrived as Rachel Zerby was camping along the lake, near the place where the duck capsized, "she told the Washington Post.
" We have a clear line of sight to both sides of the river. " "Water," said Zerby. "I noticed that most boats had left the water, but there were still at least two or maybe three ducks near the Belle." [19659023] Crazy storm … 11 dead up to present on Table Rock 5 individuals still missing Lakesideresort.com #tablerock #lovetablerock #tablerocklake #branson
Posted by Lakeside Resort & Restaurant on the Table Rock Lake on Thursday, July 19, 2018
