Life jackets dangle from canopy as Coast Guard pulls duck boat out of Table Rock Lake

Unused orange life jackets remained tangled in the duck boat’s naked canopy as a barge crane hoisted the tragedy-stricken boat from the bottom of Table Rock Lake Monday morning.

The lake water that drowned 17 of its 31 occupants Thursday night spewed from the back of the boat as crews hoisted its white nose upward into the sunlight.

About 10:10 a.m., less than an hour after divers with the Missouri Highway Patrol went into the water in the lake near Branson, the boat broke the surface of the water, with two small American flags still intact on the front. The metal structure supporting the canopy was seen opened, with unused life jackets tangled in the top.

The boat was to be placed on a flatbed trailer and taken to an undisclosed, secure location, where the National Transportation Safety Board will take custody, looking into many questions — including why none of the boats passengers were wearing life jackets when it was overwhelmed by high waves in Thursday’s storm.

Five children were counted among the dead.

In a press conference after the raising of the boat, U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Scott Stoermer said the use of life jackets and whatever directions passengers were given about them is part of the ongoing investigation.

So are questions about the decision to take the boat into the water despite reported warnings from the National Weather Service of an impending storm.

The decision to go out on the water and whether to advise passengers to use life jackets were “operational decisions” by the captain and are under investigation, Stoermer said.

The Coast Guard and the NTSB are conducting joint and separate investigations into the actions and conditions that led to the sinking, a Coast Guard spokesperson said. And the Missouri Highway Patrol is conducting an investigation into any possible negligence or failures by the boat company and its employees.

Regulations require that there is a life jacket available for every passenger, Stoermer said. They are not required to wear them.

No one aboard the sinking duck boat on Table Rock Lake was wearing a “safety device,” according to a new incident report released Saturday by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The boat company, Ride the Ducks, coordinated Monday morning’s recovery under the Coast Guard ‘s watch.

The Missouri Highway Patrol’s divers photographed the boat extensively where it lay at the bottom of the lake in case the process of raising the boat created any new damage, Stoermer said.

Divers entered the water shortly before 9:30 a.m. and attached cables to the sunken boat, which rested about 80 feet below the surface. A crane on a barge began lifting the boat to the surface shortly after 10 a.m.

The duck boat surfaced about 200 yards from the concrete ramp that it was trying to reach in Thursday’s storm.

Once the boat was brought to the surface, crews began pumping out water. They raised the front end to drain out more water. The crews let the boat float for several minutes to test its stability, then towed it toward the shore where a trailer waited.

On Saturday, investigators retrieved a video recorder from the sunken duck boat and sent it to Washington, D.C., for analysis. They also obtained video recorders from a second duck boat that had made it safely to shore and from the Showboat Branson Belle, which was docked nearby when the duck boat submerged.

Stoermer declined to comment on the condition of the boat, it being part of the investigation. The canopy was seen opened, with unused life jackets tangled in the top.

Stoermer thanked the cooperation of the Missouri Highway Patrol, Stone County sheriff’s office, the city of Branson and the Showboat Branson Belle in aiding in the salvaging of the boat.

The Showboat Branson Belle, whose patrons watched the terror unfold Thursday, was closed and silent Monday as the salvage team raised the duck boat some 50 yards from the showboat’s giant red paddle wheel.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

This story was originally published July 23, 2018 at 9:32 AM.