Horrific video shows moments before duck boat capsizes on choppy Missouri lake, killing 17

Horrific video shows the moments before a duck boat capsized on a choppy lake in Missouri, before sinking during a thunderstorm leaving at least 17 people dead.

Video captured from another vessel shows the Ride the Ducks amphibious boat pushing through white caps and high winds on Table Rock Lake in Branson on Thursday.

READ MORE: Children among 13 killed after duck boat capsizes on Missouri lake

The footage shows the vessel bobbing through the waves as the haul boat begins to become submerged in the swollen lake.

“Those poor people,” a woman says in the video. “Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, please make it.”

1:42 Intense wind, swollen lake blamed for tragic Missouri duck boat accident

• Intense wind, swollen lake blamed for tragic Missouri duck boat accident
• Video from duck boat that safely escaped Missouri storm shows intensity of wind, waves
• Missouri duck boat passengers attended to after fatal capsizing
• Multiple Missouri duck boat passengers confirmed dead after capsizing: Police
• 8 dead, 7 injured after duck boat capsizes near Branson, Missouri

Previous Video

Next Video

Authorities said 31 people were onboard when thunderstorms rolled into the area. Fourteen people survived the sinking, while seven of them were injured.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

“There was some heavy wind. It was having problems through the wind,” Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader told reporters at a news conference late on Thursday. “They were coming back toward land. There was actually two ducks. The first one made it out. The second one didn’t.”

Panicked onlookers tried to assist in the rescue moments after the boat disappeared into the lake. Rader said an off-duty sheriff’s deputy working security for the boat company helped rescue people after the boat capsized. Dive teams from several law enforcement agencies assisted in the effort.

READ MORE: Before deadly Seattle crash, critics called duck boats too dangerous

The sheriff said life jackets were on board the boat but it’s unclear if anyone was wearing them.

Duck boats, which can travel on land and in water, have been involved in other deadly incidents in the past. Five college students were killed in 2015 in Seattle when a duck boat collided with a bus, and 13 people died in 1999 when a duck boat sank near Hot Springs, Ark.

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.

–with files from the Associated Press