He said 14 people survived, and that seven of them were injured. Duck boats are a popular tourist attraction in cities across the country, allowing passengers to sightsee by land and water in the same vehicle. [The violent storm behind the duck boat tragedy was well-predicted, not ‘out of nowhere’] 
 
 Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told reporters that he believed the boat — which he said was one of two duck boats still on the lake during the storm — sank because of the weather. Another duck boat on the lake made it safely back to shore. Another duck boat on the lake was able to safely make it back to shore. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch at 11:20 a.m., nearly eight hours before the storm struck, and at that time, it predicted “widespread damaging winds likely with isolated significant gusts to 75 mph possible.” 
 
 The Weather Service then issued a severe thunderstorm warning — indicating a violent storm was imminent — at 6:32 p.m., about 30 minutes before police were called about the boat capsizing. Ride the Ducks is a national duck tour operator with locations across the United States, and Ripley’s purchase of the Branson company last year added to its collection of more than 100 entertainment venues. 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. The company has been operating in the city for 40 years and is “a staple of Branson,” Smagala said. Federal investigators also headed to the scene to join state and local officials, with the National Transportation Safety Board dispatching a “Go Team” to the lake to help probe the latest disaster involving duck boats, which have been involved in several fatal accidents in water and on land. 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. Jason Pace said four people remain missing Friday after the Ride the Ducks boat sank on Table Rock Lake in Branson Thursday evening. Dive teams from a number of law enforcement agencies were assisting in the effort, but the sheriff said the divers ended their search for the night. Among those helping were one of his deputies, who was off-duty and providing security on the Branson Belle, a showboat used for lake tours. A sheriff in Missouri said a tourist boat has apparently capsized on the lake, leaving... (Associated Press) 
 
 Emergency responders work at Table Rock Lake after a deadly boat accident in Branson, Mo., Thursday, July 19, 2018.
– Severe weather is being blamed for what could be America's deadliest "duck boat" disaster. Authorities in Branson, Missouri, have confirmed that at least 13 people, including children, died Thursday night when an amphibious boat carrying tourists capsized and sank in Table Rock Lake. Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Jason Pace said Friday that four people remain missing, reports the AP. He added that 14 people survived, and that seven of them were injured. Stone County Sheriff Douglas Rader said the boat apparently sank due to intense winds and thunderstorms in the area, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Rader said some of the 31 people on the boat were rescued by an off-duty deputy who was in the area. National Weather Service meteorologist Steve Lindenberg says a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the area Thursday evening, the AP reports. Eyewitness video shows the boat being struck by huge waves. "Duck boats," originally used by the military in World War II, have been involved in several other deadly accidents nationwide, including a sinking in Arkansas that killed 13 people in 1999, though a Ride the Ducks spokeswoman says this is the first accident in more than 40 years of operation in Branson. "I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the captain did his best," Roger Braillier, captain of another duck boat, tells the Washington Post. "All of our hearts are completely broken right now."