On 5th anniversary of Branson duck boat tragedy, Coast Guard yet to update guidance

A tourist attraction turned into a tragedy five years ago at Branson's Table Rock Lake — 17 people drowned when a duck boat sank.

In December 2022, standards were signed into law that aim to prevent similar accidents, and gave the United States Coast Guard six months to implement them.

More than six months later, the Coast Guard has not issued any updated guidance.

Legislation aims to prevent any more incidents, but implementation is slow

Missouri's Sen. Josh Hawley, who was attorney general at the time of the Branson duck boat tragedy, introduced the "Duck Boat Safety Enhancement Act of 2019."

The legislation aimed to "prevent similar accidents in the future by requiring amphibious vehicles meet minimum buoyancy requirements, weather preparedness standards, and new canopy regulations," Hawley said in a recent letter to the United States Coast Guard. It was later re-introduced, co-sponsored by former Sen. Roy Blunt and Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, and passed the House and Senate.

More: Congress passes safety regulations on duck boats, spurred by 2018 Branson tragedy

President Joe Biden signed the standards into law on Dec. 23 as part of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. The U.S. Coast guard was required to “initiate a rulemaking to establish additional safety standards for DUKW amphibious passenger vessels” within 6 months.

On July 18, Hawley wrote a letter to the Coast Guard, urging them to issue new guidance as soon as possible.

"It is critically important that we ensure the safety of all passengers and prevent future accidents," Hawley wrote, requesting an update on the regulation and expected timeline by Aug. 1.

More: 'God spared my child': Mom of Branson duck boat survivor speaks out

The Coast Guard Public Affairs Headquarters in Washington, D.C., had not returned comment on the matter by deadline Tuesday.

Other legal action sought in duck boat tragedy results in dismissals, settlements

In August 2018, Hawley sued Branson Duck Vehicles LLC and Ripley Entertainment Inc. for alleged violations of state law meant to protect consumers from fraudulent business practices. A stay was issued in 2019, and it's unclear if the case will be picked back up.

Throughout 2019, federal prosecutors indicted the duck boat captain, Ride the Ducks Branson's general manager and Ride the Ducks Branson's operations supervisor, on 17 counts of "seaman's manslaughter," In December 2020, federal judge M. Douglas Harpool dismissed the indictments. That same month, federal prosecutors filed an appeal, but the appeals court issued a preliminary judgement that reaffirmed the dismissal.

In July 2021, then-Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Stone County Prosecutor Matt Shelby sought 17 charges of manslaughter against the duck boat captain, Ride the Ducks Branson's general manager and Ride the Ducks Branson's operations supervisor. In April 2022, the judge in that case dismissed the charges.

More: Family sues Ride the Ducks after Missouri couple killed in boat tragedy

Ripley Entertainment, the company that owned Ride the Ducks Branson, faced 33 wrongful death or personal injury claims. In a federal lawsuit, the surviving riders and the families of the deceased accused Ripley Entertainment and others of being negligent before and during the storm on July 19, 2018. In July 2019, the company reached settlements in 32 of the lawsuits, according to U.S. District Judge Doug Harpool.

The dollar amounts of the settlements have not been released to the public, but Harpool has previously told the News-Leader they were "substantial."

Susan Szuch is the health and public policy reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on Twitter @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Legal, legislative progress made in years since duck boat tragedy