Tour boat capsizes

last updated 8 January 2015

Lake George, N.Y.

A sightseeing boat overturned on a calm lake in upstate New York this week, killing 20 elderly tourists who had gone to see fall colors in the Adirondack Mountains. Several others were rushed to a hospital after being plucked from the cold waters of Lake George. One survivor told a rescuer that she had seen “a big boat coming close” and had said, “‘Whoop-dee-doo, I love a rocking boat.’” Investigators said the wake of a larger vessel may have tilted the 38-foot Ethan Allen, causing the plastic deck chairs to slide to one side. Seconds later the boat flipped and sank in 70 feet of water before the 47 passengers, many using walkers, had time to put on life jackets.