KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ Relatives of Ervin and Horace Coleman, who were among the 17 people who died last year when a duck boat sank on Table Rock Lake, have reached a settlement with the operator of the Ride the Ducks business in Branson.
Lawyers for the Colemans last week filed a notice of settlement with Ripley Entertainment. The settlement follows a mediation session that occurred in January.
Ernesto Sigmon, a Dallas attorney for the relatives of Ervin and Horace Coleman, could not discuss the settlement.
"The actual terms of it are under seal," he said.
A spokeswoman and a lawyer for Ripley Entertainment were not immediately available for comment.
Ervin and Horace Coleman were among the nine members of the same family who died when the duck boat sank on Table Rock Lake.
It is the second settlement arising from the July 19, 2018, disaster. In November, the adult daughters of William and Janice Bright of Higginsville, Mo., reached confidential settlements with Ripley Entertainment. The Brights were celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary when they died on the duck boat ride.
The Ride the Ducks operation, which takes tourists on and around Table Rock Lake on amphibious, World War II-era vehicles, has faced a battery of litigation since last year, and several lawsuits remain pending in federal and state court.
Ripley Entertainment, which bought the Ride the Ducks business in Branson late in 2017, is accused of ignoring warnings of severe weather the evening of July 19, 2016. A storm with winds exceeding 70 miles per hour battered a duck boat with 31 people on board before it sank in Table Rock Lake.
The duck boat industry for years has been criticized for not making safety improvements that were recommended following a 1999 duck boat catastrophe that killed 13 people in Arkansas.
In addition to the lawsuits, the captain of the sunken duck boat, Kenneth Scott McKee, faces a federal criminal charge of admiralty misconduct. He has pleaded not guilty.
