Sen. Josh Hawley renews push to make duck boats safer
Austin Huguelet
JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley is renewing efforts to make duck boats safer in the wake of the deadly tragedy on Table Rock Lake last summer.
Seventeen people died after an amphibious craft capsized in July, bringing national attention to southwest Missouri.
Amid the mourning, concerns were raised that safety recommendations made by the National Transportation Safety Board after a 1999 incident in Arkansas were never turned into law.
In an interview Thursday, Hawley said he plans to introduce a bill next week to fix that.
“I’ll be taking every step possible to see that the duck boat tragedy that happened down at Table Rock Lake does not happen again,” Hawley said.
The legislation largely mirrors a bill previously filed by former Sen. Claire McCaskill, whom Hawley unseated in November, but also enacts other NTSB recommendations not included in past proposals.
Like McCaskill, Hawley would require the Coast Guard to make rules mandating that duck boats have ballast tanks that help them avoid sinking if they flood, and require operators to make a slew of immediate changes, including:
- Removing canopies that make it difficult for passengers to escape a flooding boat
- Requiring passengers to wear life jackets
- Installing independently powered bilge pumps to remove water from a flooding boat
- Ensuring boats are watertight before entering the water.
The duck boat that sank near Branson featured a canopy atop the craft, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol found no passengers or crew were wearing a life jacket.
Hawley’s additions to previous legislation include new limits on the conditions in which duck boats can operate.
Operators would be required to check National Weather Service forecasts before getting underway and periodically while on the water, and be required to leave the water or find safe harbor if the NWS issues a watch or warning for wind speeds exceeding a vessel’s certification.
On the day of the Branson sinking, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch for southwest Missouri — including Table Rock Lake — several hours before a fast-moving storm moved through with 60-80 mph winds that overtook the boat.
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