KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Seventeen people are dead, some of whom are children, after a Duck boat capsized on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Missouri. The Stone County Sheriff said late Friday morning divers had recovered the four remaining missing people from the water. Divers had recovered two more earlier. Authorities say the ages of those dead range from 1-70 years old. NBC affiliate KY3 reports the incident happened around 7 p.m. Thursday as severe thunderstorms moved into the area. Officials believe strong winds played a role in the incident. The Stone County Sheriff's Office said at 7:09 p.m. the first 911 call came in reporting a "Duck" tour boat had sunk. It was reported people were in the water. Multiple agencies responded to the scene. The Stone County Sheriff's Office said there were 29 passengers and 2 crew members on the boat. Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told KY3 some passengers were children. As of Friday morning, 17 people died and 14 survived, some of whom were injured. Seven people were transported to a local hospital; one person had severe injuries but is expected to recover. Witness video shows the boat being rocked hard by waves in the moments before the crash. Two Duck boats were in the water when winds picked up. Both headed towards land but only one was able to make it back. Rader said life jackets were on board at the time. An off-duty Stone County Sheriff's deputy was on the Branson Belle at the time of the crash and helped rescue people. The Stone County Sheriff's Office said the Western Taney County Fire dive team worked until 11:30 p.m. searching the waters. The Missouri Highway Patrol dive team took over water recovery Friday morning. The sheriff's office said Branson City Hall is open for anyone that is missing family members or people can call 417-337-8515 for information on their loved ones. Anyone who may have video of the incident is asked to contact the Stone County Sheriff's Department. Officials held a news conference at 9 a.m. Friday in the Branson Belle parking lot. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson joined emergency response officials at the briefing. By late afternoon, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill was in Branson and meetings with officials for updates. In Branson now. Heading to a brief from the Coast Guard and NTSB. #DuckBoatTragedy — Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) July 20, 2018 —<doc-sep>A duck boat on Table Rock Lake, about 18 miles from Branson, Missouri, capsized, leaving dozens of people in the water. Early reports indicated that six people were killed, but the Stone County Sheriff later confirmed that eight people had died. That number has since been increased to 17. It is believed that a storm caused the accident. According to local weather stations, there had been wind gusts of more than 60 mph at the time the boat capsized. Strong winds can greatly impact water vessels, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. “According to the most recent Coast Guard accident data, nearly three percent of all recreational boating accidents are directly related to severe weather conditions that can quickly overwhelm smaller craft. Some thunderstorms, for example, create microbursts – intense downdrafts over an area a half-mile to three miles wide capable of producing wind gusts from 60 mph to more than 100 mph. Microbursts can capsize a small boat or blow a passenger overboard,” according to the United States Coast Guard’s Boating Safety. There is also some scanner audio that suggests that there may have been a tornado in the area, but that has not been confirmed at this time. “Need a water rescue. Will be north of the show boats. Will be a duck that has capsized. We have approximately 30 individuals in the water,” a dispatcher says in the early scanner audio of the tragedy. You can listen to that audio below. VideoVideo related to table rock lake duck boat accident cause believed to be severe weather 2018-07-19T21:37:38-04:00 “Major wind causes major incident on Table Rock Lake, Branson. Ride the Ducks capsized 30 people in the water, Other boater Problems, Showboat Branson Bell Staging Area and State Park over six fatalities. Divers searching. Also other area damage,” the scanner audio caption on Broadcastify said. Duck boats are designed to both drive on land and to travel in the water. They are very popular amongst tourists. It’s unclear how the wind may have flipped the boat. A line of severe thunderstorms moved through the area about an hour ago, but it’s unclear if that weather system may have impacted the Table Rock Lake area. “Crews from multiple agencies are on scene of an MCI ‘Mass Casualty Incident’ ‘tourist type boat involved’ this is on Table Rock Lake, Stone County, Branson, Missouri. Taney County assisting. Several patients transported to area hospital. Divers on scene. Staging at Branson Belle. However the Branson Belle is not involved. More info to follow. 8:20pm PIO E. Nielsen,” read a Facebook post from the Southern Stone County Fire Protection District. The company that is believed to own the duck boat that capsized, “Ride the Ducks,” has not released a statement of any kind. “Ride through the scenic Ozarks on our amphibian Duck that goes right from land into the river. Climb to the top of the Mountain, discover the history behind some of America’s unique military vehicles then splashdown and cruise Table Rock Lake. Drive the duck a little if you want. Quack along with the captain and the music aboard this 70-minute Ozark adventure,” reads a description on the company’s website.<doc-sep>Arkansas natives 53-year-old Steve Smith and 15-year-old Lance Smith. Illinois native Leslie Dennison, 64. Update 8:45 a.m. EDT July 21: The Stone County coroner confirmed to KSDK that William Asher, 69, and his girlfriend, Rose Hamann, were among those killed in Thursday night's duck boat accident in Missouri. The news station reported that the couple lived in St. Louis County, Missouri. They were visiting Branson to celebrate Hamann's birthday, which was on Monday, according KSDK. Todd Dennison's mother, 64-year-old Leslie Dennison, was also killed in the boat accident, the Kansas City Star reported. In an emotional and brief interview Friday, Todd Dennison told the newspaper that his mother was visiting Branson with his 12-year-old daughter, Alicia, and that they were together for less than an hour before they boarded the duck boat. He told the Star that while in the hospital on Thursday night, his daughter told him that she could feel her grandmother pushing her upward from below while the boat was sinking. "She said her grandmother saved her," Todd Dennison told the Star. Update 1:30 a.m. EDT July 21: Authorities have identified more victims in the duck boat accident. Steve Smith and his teenage son, Lance Smith, from Osceola, Arkansas, were among those killed in the crash. Steve Smith was a pastor and Lance Smith was preparing to open his own church in less than a week, according to CNN, first reported by The Christian Chronicle. Steve Smith’s daughter, Loren Smith, suffered a concussion during the accident but survived. Smith’s wife, Pam Smith, opted to stay behind and was not on the boat. #BREAKING: 2 Arkansans died on the duck boat in Branson. According to church members’s Facebook posts, Steve Smith and Lance Smith, 15, are from Osceola. This is a picture of Lance at the pulpit that’s circulating on social media. pic.twitter.com/WYUkHckUvm — Stephanie Sharp (@stephmsharp) July 21, 2018 William and Janice Bright from Higginsville, Missouri, near Kansas City, were also identified as victims in the crash. WDAF reports that the couple had three children, 16 grandchildren and had been married for 45 years. "My great nieces and nephews now have no grandparents," Karen Abbott, William Bright's sister, told WDAF. Update 11:00 p.m. EDT July 20: A summer vacation ended in tragedy for nine members of an Indiana family, along with eight other tourists, killed when a duck boat capsized Thursday evening on a lake in Branson, Missouri. The Coleman family had traveled to Branson for their annual road trip, according to The New York Times, which interviewed Carolyn Coleman. Coleman said she lost two of her brothers-in-law and that three generations of the family died in the accident, including four young children, the Times reported. “We just lost some wonderful people,” she said. The Indianapolis Star reported that the four children killed in the accident were all under the age of 10. "They were very loved," Ingrid Coleman Douglas said in a telephone interview with the Star. Coleman Douglas said the victims included two of her uncles, cousins and their children. "It’s a huge family on all sides. It’s unimaginable. I would never have thought I would have lost this number of people this way," she said. Members of the Coleman family. Credit: Gary Coleman Credit: Gary Coleman Coleman Douglas identified the victims as her uncles Horace "Butch" Coleman and Irving Raymond Coleman; Horace Coleman's wife, Belinda Coleman; her cousins, Angela Coleman and Glenn Coleman; Angela's 2-year-old son Maxwell; Glenn's two sons Evan and Reece; and his 1-year-old daughter, Arya. Glenn's wife, Tia Coleman, and Angela's older son, whose name has not been released, survived the accident, the Star reported. Update 5:15 p.m. EDT July 20: Stone County authorities now say all 17 of the victims in the duck boat accident have been accounted for and that nine of the victims were from the same family, according to Gov. Mike Parson's office. Two members of the family, identified by local news outlets as the Coleman family, survived. Officials said the victims range in age from 1 to 70 years old. This is the Coleman family. Only two family members remain after the duck boat they were on capsized in Branson Missouri. pic.twitter.com/OjRQLhbGPE — Alexis McAdams (@AlexisMcAdamsTV) July 20, 2018 Meantime, mourners are putting flowers on the victims’ cars in the Ride the Ducks parking lot, and the community of Branson, Missouri, is holding several candlelight vigils Friday night in memory of those killed. One of the vigils is scheduled at Table Rock Lake where the accident happened, according to KY3-TV. RETWEET: Mourners plan 3 candlelight vigils Friday night for victims of Ride the Ducks tragedy: https://t.co/q7m9IEGQf6 — KY3 News (@kytv) July 20, 2018 Update 4:30 p.m. EDT July 20: Family and friends are mourning the staggering loss of life on Table Rock Lake Thursday evening. One woman lost nine members of her family, USA Today reported, citing Gov. Mike Parson’s office. 9 members of one family died in the Branson duck boat accident, according to the Missouri governor's office https://t.co/nawQ3xKyt1 — USA TODAY (@USATODAY) July 20, 2018 Update 2:20 p.m. EDT July 20: Branson Mayor Karen Best told The Associated Press that Bob Williams, the man who was driving the Ride the Ducks boat that sunk Thursday in a southwest Missouri lake, was a "great ambassador for Branson" who "was at every event." Seventeen people died, including Williams, and 14 others were injured Thursday when the duck boat capsized in Table Rock Lake, according to authorities. Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said earlier Friday that the boat’s captain survived. In a statement posted on Facebook, employees of Ride the Ducks Branson said the business would be closed “while we support the investigation, and to allow time to grieve for the families and the community.” “This incident has deeply affected all of us. Words cannot convey how profoundly our hearts are breaking,” the statement said. “Thank you for your support, and we ask that your thoughts and prayers be with the families during this time.” Update 11:40 a.m. EDT July 20: Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said Friday morning that authorities recovered four more bodies after a duck boat capsized in southwest Missouri, KSMU reported, bringing the death toll from Thursday's incident to 17. Update from Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader at 10:19 AM: the last four bodies have been recovered by divers from Table Rock Lake near Branson, bringing the death toll to 17. This concludes the search, and now the investigation begins. pic.twitter.com/q1pEKlfNTi — ksmu (@ksmu) July 20, 2018 Rader said 14 people were taken to hospitals after the incident. He said the driver of the Ride the Ducks boat died. The captain survived. Update 11:20 a.m. EDT July 20: Nearly two decades ago, the National Transportation Safety Board issued a warning about boats with overhead canopies like the one that sank Thursday on Table Rock Lake after a deadly accident claimed 13 lives in Arkansas, according to the Kansas City Star. Federal agency warned about danger of duck boat canopies before Table Rock tragedy https://t.co/FyPIJypKVK — The Kansas City Star (@KCStar) July 20, 2018 The Miss Majestic duck boat was carrying 21 passengers when it sank in 1999 in Lake Hamilton, the Star reported. Authorities found seven dead passengers trapped inside the boat when they recovered it, four of which were pinned to the underside of the canopy, according to the Star. "Contributing to the high loss of life was a continuous canopy roof that entrapped passengers within the sinking vehicle," NTSB officials said in an accident report. Authorities continued searching Friday for four people who are presumed dead after Thursday’s accident in southwest Missouri. Officials said 13 other people have been confirmed dead in the incident. Update 10:25 a.m. EDT July 20: Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said divers are going back in the water Friday in search of four people who remain missing and are presumed dead after Thursday's duck boat accident on Table Rock Lake. Rader said the search had shifted to “recovery mode for the bodies that are still missing,” at a news conference Friday morning. "It's been a long night,” Rader said. “It's been a very trying night.”<doc-sep>
At a Glance A duck boat sank during a storm on a lake in southern Missouri, killing 17 people, some of them children. Seven of the 31 people aboard the boat when it sank were injured. The sheriff's office said all passengers are now accounted for. This version of the article is no longer being updated. For the latest news, click here. At least 17 people, some of them children, are dead after a duck boat capsized Thursday during severe weather at a lake in southwestern Missouri, authorities said. Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said the bodies of the four remaining missing passengers were located as divers resumed the search Friday morning. There were 31 people aboard the Ride the Ducks boat when it sank on Table Rock Lake near Branson. Seven were hospitalized. A spokeswoman for the Cox Medical Center Branson said four adults and three children arrived at the hospital shortly after the incident, the Associated Press reported. Two adults were in critical condition and the others were treated for minor injuries, she said. "To the best of our knowledge, there was a fast-moving storm that came out of nowhere," Jim Pattison Jr., president of Ripley Entertainment, which owns the duck boat company, told CBS This Morning. (MORE: Large Tornadoes Devastate Several Iowa Towns) A thunderstorm rolled through Branson, a popular vacation spot, with wind gusts as high as 63 mph at about 6:30 p.m. local time. Sustained winds were over 40 mph. Lightning and moderate rain lowered visibility to less than two miles, said weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Belles. Pattison also said the boats shouldn't have been on the water. Rader said he believed storms caused the boat to capsize. Two duck boats were on the lake, Rader said, but only one made it safely to shore as the storm hit. Authorities said they received their first call about the incident at 7:09 p.m. local time. A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the area that included Table Rock Lake at 6:30 p.m. Advertisement The sheriff said he didn't know what time the boat went into the water. The storm produced waves 5 feet high on the lake, said Capt. Jim Pulley, owner of Sea Tow Table Rock Lake, USA Today reported. A duck boat resembles a floating bus. It has a canopy and floats just above the water line. Both factors could create difficulty for passengers trying to escape if the vessel sinks. (MORE: Storms with Damaging Winds, Tornadoes Expected Friday in Midwest, Southeast) The National Transportation Safety Board and Coast Guard have been called in to investigate the sinking. Lifejackets were reportedly on the boat, but Rader said in a Friday morning press conference that it was unknown if the passengers were wearing them. Laws don't require passengers to be wearing the lifejackets, Pattison said. Ripley Entertainment spokeswoman Suzanne Smagala said this was the Branson tour’s first accident in more than 40 years of operation. Duck boats, known for their ability to travel on land and in water, have been involved in other deadly incidents in the past. They include one in 2015 in Seattle in which five college students were killed when a boat collided with a bus, and one in 1999 that left 13 people dead after the boat sank near Hot Springs, Arkansas. Safety advocates have sought improvements to the boats since the Arkansas incident. Critics argued that part of the problem is numerous agencies regulate the boats with varying safety requirements. Duck boats were originally used by the U.S. military in World War II to transport troops and supplies, and later were modified for use as sightseeing vehicles.