No duck boat discussion?

Black Valkyrie

Active Member
Jul 19, 2014
688
Canada
Boat Info
1993 Sundancer 270 DA
Engines
Twin 4.3
No life jackets? Boat out in gale force winds? What qualifications do the "captains" need? Are they truly trained as captains or is there some weasel clause because the vehicle is amphibious?
 
No life jackets? Boat out in gale force winds? What qualifications do the "captains" need? Are they truly trained as captains or is there some weasel clause because the vehicle is amphibious?

From what I've read both boats had both a licensed captain and a commercial driver. Don't know what qualifications or certifications the captain had to have.

Also, when they entered the water it was calm however at 6:30 there was a severe storm warning in place and the first 911 call came in at just past 7:00. When you watch video of the surviving boat not a single person has a life jacket on even though they were in as grave danger as the stricken boat.

These vehicles seem to be death traps because they have no natural buoyancy so I think with they go down they go down extremely quickly. They also were enclosed so getting out would have been difficult in the confusion of the sinking.

I could have absolutely seen myself taking my family on one of these tours if we happened to have been presented the opportunity. All in all is so sad.
 
It is a tragedy. The boat should not have been in the water at that time. We have the same duck boats in DC....the Captains are licensed and know their boats well. The boat can't handle heavy seas and they can't handle the amount of water that was getting in the boat. It is made of steel and will sink quickly.

My concern about this boat is it appeared to have plexiglass or strataglass windows on the sides of the boat which would have turned it into a deathtrap. Keep in mind the original design did not have a canvas roof or side curtains.

If it was me....I would have headed for shore and beached it the moment the weather came up. I believe the Captain also perished in this accident.
 
It is a tragedy. The boat should not have been in the water at that time. We have the same duck boats in DC....the Captains are licensed and know their boats well. The boat can't handle heavy seas and they can't handle the amount of water that was getting in the boat. It is made of steel and will sink quickly.

My concern about this boat is it appeared to have plexiglass or strataglass windows on the sides of the boat which would have turned it into a deathtrap. Keep in mind the original design did not have a canvas roof or side curtains.

If it was me....I would have headed for shore and beached it the moment the weather came up. I believe the Captain also perished in this accident.
I heard the captain survived and was speaking with authorities.
 
Is the boat still made? From what I gather these boats were a landing craft in WWII and were a one time use boat. Is that correct?
 
Wife and I went on one last year in Pittsburgh but the Ohio River doesn't get that bad here. It was a nice calm day when we went but it does sit low in the water. I would imagine 2-3' waves would swamp it. I would have probably been nervous in 1' waves. The top is canvas with isenglass sides but our sides were rolled up. They very well could have closed them up to try to keep water out, which would have trapped them inside. There is a section in the back that is uncovered where about 6-8 people can sit so they might have had the best chance.

There were tons of life vests in the overhead racks and were easy to access. I do remember on the tour the captain joked that they had never had to use them so had no idea if they worked...lol
 
How much do you want to bet they are suddenly going to make all passengers wear life vests, have a safety meeting, base bookings on weather forecasts and suddenly monitor VHF radio for weather conditions?
 
I rode in a duck boat in the 60s when I was a little kid. They were only 20 years old or so and I recall wearing a life jacket. The one we rode in was still painted green with an open canvas top and you would get some water spray. At the time I recall thinking it was so fast. It seems like the cabin enclosures and passenger loading on such a narrow beam is just a recipe for disaster.
 
I have previously commented about the potential for tragedy involving these death traps. They have a history of accidents in different states. Why not do a bus tour then a boat tour? The people who take these tours have no idea the limitations these amphibious vehicles have. It's really sad that someone dies while sightseeing due to ignorance or neglect.
 
Is the boat still made? From what I gather these boats were a landing craft in WWII and were a one time use boat. Is that correct?


Yup.....all original from WWII. Most were never used (couldn't move enough men and equipment) and sold as surplus. My guess is this incident will stop their use entirely. Ironically this is the report from 1999 where 13 people died:


Within seven minutes, the Miss Majestic had sunk to the bottom of the lake, killing 13 people.

The 1999 tragedy was determined to be due to inadequate maintenance of the vessel, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. In a 2002 report on the incident, the NTSB suggested a list of recommendations that other duck boats operators could follow to keep their passengers safe, including removing the canopies, which had restricted passengers' ability to escape once they were underwater; and adding backup buoyancy, so vessels could stay afloat even if they got flooded.
 
Rode one in Philly years ago with my daughter on a school trip. It was a fun ride, had life jackets available, but we didn't wear them. It was a calm day and no commercial traffic. That one had no side windows. The DUK had a bilge pump, boat hook, anchor and rode, and running lights and VHF.. The driver had a master's ticket, I asked him what was required. I thought it looked like a fun job.
I don't know why they were out in those conditions, tragic. Those side panels would make that like a school bus in a flooded river, no chance. With all the accidents they've had, I don't know how they get insurance.
 
I am not sure a life jacket would have helped because from what I saw the thing would have been impossible to get out of.
 
It was a lake so warm. I assume if you had got in the water with a life jacket on you would have survived. At least I hope you would have because we have been in bigger waves in the cruiser and have a set plan to leave if things get bad and we start to sink. I carry a knife with me on the boat encase I need to cut a line or canvas top or plastic window.
 
I'm sorry but these things are death traps !! One of my coworkers and his new wife lost their life in 1999 on the one in Arkansas and I told my wife and kids then don't ever get on one of those things for any reason. I've been boating all my life and the only way I would ever get on one would be to save lives if that was the only thing floating and the top would come off first or I wouldn't get on it at all.....
 
I've boated Table Rock lake for decades. Table Rock is a big lake with a lot of boaters. Many times I have thought that these boats were unsafe with only boat chop to contend with. Its just so very sad.
 
It was a very preventable tragedy. There were lots of memorials over the weekend. One family lost 9 of 11 family members while a family of 9 all escaped alive. Weather in this part of the country can come up fast, but they had fair warning. Usually you do the land tour first, then go out on the lake. However, the two ducks that got caught on the lake were going out of order and doing the lake portion first to avoid the storm. So they knew it was coming. Poor judgement and unsafe equipment.
 
Those customized ones they had down there....they look like school buses screwed on top of a jon boat! I'm with Chada..above..stating not sure how much better they'd be with life jackets. Maybe 2 more people might have escaped and popped to the surface. If those plummet to the bottom that quickly..well, just look at them...seem difficult to get out out of when upside down and in mass confusion.

Those style of tourist rigs are common all over the country. Not sure how many of them are actually from WWII surplus..I know a few companies were copying those for tourism industry well after WWII. But still, just a quick look at 'em, schoolbus on a little jon boat! Not enough power for a headwind with those big flat bus like surfaces, and low freeboard 'n bow.

They'll be a lot of them for sale dirt cheap now. Most tourism places won't be able to carry insurance on them starting...right about now. So they'll sell 'me or scrap 'em.

We're in July, when what I call the "Triple H" weather forecasts are the same in day in and day out. Every morning, the forecast is "Hazy hot 'n humid with a chance of a thunderstorm mid afternoon". And the thunderstorms usually don't occur, or you hear a little rumble passing inland.

Horrible tragedy.
 
This is the lake I boat on....very sad incident. The duck was retrieved from the bottom today. If you have Facebook, search for 417 drone imaging....they have a video of part of the recovery today.
 
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