17 dead, all bodies recovered after tour boat capsizes in Missouri lake amid severe weather

A boat carrying 31 people capsized on a lake near Branson, Missouri, as thunderstorms moved through the area on Thursday evening.

The incident occurred on the "Ride the Ducks" amphibious vehicle on Table Rock Lake, which is located a few miles southwest of Branson, according to the Southern Stone County Fire Protection District.

Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told the assembled media that 17 people died after the boat sank. Search and rescues efforts turned into a recovery operation on Friday as divers searched for missing victims. Recovery efforts concluded Friday morning when the bodies of the remaining four missing people were recovered.

An unknown number of children are among the people who drowned, according to Reuters.

Rader said the boat sank in 40 feet of water and eventually rolled into 80 feet of water. He also said authorities had located the boat and would be recovering it later Friday, according to the Associated Press.

Divers from Western Taney County Fire were on the scene until 11:30 p.m. Thursday, officials said. The Missouri Highway Patrol Dive Team took over diving operations on Friday.

AccuWeather has reached out to the Stone County Sheriff office to offer our forecasting expertise to keep people safe during rescue and recovery.

Along with the 29 passengers, two crew members were on the boat.

Emergency crews were called to the incident shortly after 7 p.m. CDT Thursday, according to the fire district's Twitter page.

A line of severe thunderstorms rolled through the area between 6 and 7 p.m. CDT.

Springfield-Branson Regional Airport, located about 50 miles north of Branson, recorded a wind gust of 65 mph as the storms blew through.

Branson Airport clocked a wind gust of 63 mph at 7:25 p.m. CDT.

Emergency workers patrol an area Friday, July 20, 2018, near where a duck boat capsized the night before resulting in at least 13 deaths on Table Rock Lake in Branson, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson ordered all flags at state and government offices to be flown at half-staff until July 27, in remembrance of the victims.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and the victims in this tragic event that's occurred down here," Parson said in a Friday press conference.

President Donald Trump expressed his condolences on Twitter Friday morning.

Crews from multiple agencies performed search and rescue operations at Table Rock Lake, Stone County, Branson Missouri on Thursday, July 18. (Image/Southern Stone County Fire Protection District)

The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team of investigators to the scene.

Branson is a popular tourist destination that attracts over 7 million visitors annually, according to the Branson Tourism Center. The city is located about 210 miles to the southeast of Kansas City.

Excessive heat and humidity will be a concern for recovery efforts on Friday as the mercury soars close to 100, with AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures as high as 110, according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Bill Deger.

While storms are not expected to be as severe or widespread, the chance for some thunderstorms will return for a few hours from late Friday afternoon into early Friday night, with some downpours and lightning hampering recovery efforts, he said.

"This weekend, a drier pattern will develop, but it will remain hot, with highs in the 90s both Saturday and Sunday," Deger said.