Written By: Jake Studebaker
Winds near hurricane force at 73 mph, white caps on the water, a unique boat, and a tantalizing ride ahead. A bus full of tourists excited to be visiting the corny vacation spot in the middle of America, most likely with young kids. Sadly, this time, the ride would not end in smiles nor pictures of hugs on the water.
Branson, Missouri is an odd location. I grew up not far from the tourist trap, and played in many little league baseball tournaments there, including a deep run into the ‘world series’ one year where all of us kids would run around trading team pins, and enjoying the odd draw of the city in our downtime. There isn’t much near the city of Branson. It’s almost as though the founders of the city got as far from everything sane in the world and decided to build a tourist destination. The entertainment in the city ranges from a theme park called Silver Dollar City to a Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. The odd restaurants and quirky vibe the city gives off is a great destination for plenty of young parents who look to give their kids their first vacation experience.
The tragic story that brings our attention to the otherwise fun, little town is the death of 17 people while riding some of the famous ‘Duck Boats’ which for those of you out of the loop are basically school buses that have been given a hull to allow for the the bus to also go out onto Table Rock Lake, the nearest lake.
With inclement weather reported 30 minutes prior to the outing, and the captain of the ship being quoted as talking about possibly needing life jackets it is an odd decision to go out on the water anyway. What seems like a questionable decision now, didn’t prior to the accident as the company "Ride The Ducks" has been in business for almost half a century, without any major accidents until now.
One survivor, who lost 9 family members in the accident, believes she survived by the grace of God, and in an interview recalls just wishing to die. Onlookers from other boats on the water at the time, including the Branson dinner cruise ship, the Branson Belle, began diving towards the sinking ship and throwing life vests towards the struggling swimmers from the sinking boat.
The investigation thus far has been inconclusive in discovering what happened leading up to the capsizing of this boat. They have requested to look into the boat captain’s records and the company’s decision-making process that allowed the launch of this trip.
The tragedy has wrecked the homes of multiple families, and will surely be a point of infamy for all of those living near and around Branson. It is human nature to want to find a single point of blame for the incident, but as of now no one maintenance flaw or human error is truly to blame. It is perhaps questionable why the boat was on the water in the first place, but understand the crew is trained and prepared for inclement weather situations. It is important to not seek to find blame, but instead to find points of unity, as we should all grieve with the victims in their time of need.
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