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The Death Boat: The tragic accident on West Lake Okoboji that left nine dead and changed boating in Iowa forever
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About The Death Boat: The Tragic Accident On West Lake
In the twilight of a summer evening, on a bustling Iowa lake in 1929, two speedboats collided. Nine people were killed, and boating in the state was changed forever. "The Death Boat" is the story—told in detail as never before—of the crash on West Lake Okoboji in northwestern Iowa. One boat, Zipper, had been a prime attraction at Arnolds Park, an amusement park and entertainment mecca on the water that drew vacationers from across the country. The other, Miss Thriller, was a newcomer to the lake touted as the fastest boat in the world carrying passengers for hire. Friction, even sabotage, ensued as the boat operators competed to become king of the lake. The rivalry ended in disaster. Within hours, before the last passenger’s body had been brought to shore, questions swirled: Had Miss Thriller’s captain been careless? Did the inexperience of the other pilot cause the collision? Did the bitter rivalry figure in the deadly encounter? And finally, would the recovery of Miss Thriller, from its resting place 96 feet deep in West Lake Okoboji reveal the accident’s cause? The enduring mysteries of the crash long have remained in the dark, much like Miss Thriller after she sank into the depths of West Lake Okoboji. "The Death Boat" pieces together newspaper stories, survivor accounts, public letters and private correspondence, witness testimony, supreme court decisions, and government records that shed light on those mysteries.
