Missouri Duck Boat Capsizes leaving 11 dead

No fewer than 11 people have died after an amphibious “duck boat” carrying tourists sank in stormy weather in the US state of Missouri, police have said

The BBC reported that the vessel was carrying about 30 people on Table Rock Lake, a popular tourist attraction near the town of Branson, when it capsized, local media said.

Divers have been searching the lake for about five for others who are missing.

A spokeswoman for the Cox Medical Center in Branson, Brandei Clifton, said that four adults and three children had arrived at the hospital shortly after the incident.

It happened as a line of powerful thunderstorms rolled through the American Midwest uprooting trees and downing power lines, resulting in a weather warning.

Video footage shot by a witness on shore showed two duck boats struggling through choppy waters and spray.

One of the boats made it to shore but the other was driven back by the wind and gradually swamped.
Seven people were taken to hospital, two of whom were seriously injured, police said.

Emergency crews said they responded to the incident shortly after 19:00 (00:00 GMT) on Thursday.
Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said one of his deputies was on board at the time and had helped to rescue some of the passengers.

Amphibious vehicles are popular with tourists but have been inavolved in a number of fatal accidents.