Five years after 17 people died when a duck boat sank on a Missouri lake, the U.S. Coast Guard has issued new rules for the amphibious World War II vessels retrofitted for tourist excursions.
The interim rules posted Monday require removal of window coverings and canopies, or installation of a canopy that doesn’t keep passengers from escaping if the boat floods or sinks. The Missouri vessel, and an Arkansas duck boat that sank in 1999, killing 13 people, had overhead roofs or canopies that the National Transportation Safety Board warned could greatly increase the risk of passengers becoming trapped and drowning.
Duck boats have been involved in more than 40 fatal accidents since 1999. Among their critics is Jim Hall, a former NTSB chairman. He said the new set of rules is a good step, but long overdue. Video and audio from the boat, recovered by divers, showed that the lake was calm when the vessel entered the water. But a massive storm blew in, and within minutes, the boat sank. The 17 victims included nine members of one Indiana family.
Fallout from the accident reverberated. Insurance costs rose sharply for operators. Duck boat rides ceased in Pittsburgh, Seattle and other places. Ten of the 16 remaining World War II-era vessels in operation are part of National Park Duck Tours in Hot Springs, Arkansas, which takes about 100,000 visitors each year on a tour of the historic downtown and a water ride around islands in Lake Hamilton. Operator Stacy Roberts said that in 31 years on the water, his vessels have never had an accident.
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