Eight people are dead after multiple boats collided and one capsized at a popular holiday destination in the US.
At least nine boats were piled up during a major freak storm in Lake Tahoe, between California and Nevada, on Saturday.
Ten people from a 27-foot tourist boat fell into the normally serene waters of the lake Saturday afternoon when their vessel capsized. Only two survived.
‘It happened suddenly. The water was just screaming towards the shore,’ witness Gloria Brigantino told the BBC.
‘Some of the owners were crying as their boats were wrecked. I could smell gas leaking, and some gentlemen helped take passengers off a pontoon boat that got stuck on the shore.
‘The waves just bashed it so rapidly that they ran off, fell off, and many were crying.’
The names of those who have died haven’t been released, El Dorado County officials said. They are in the process of notifying families.
National Weather Service spokesperson Matthew Chyba said winds topped 35mph and waves swelled to more than 8 feet.
‘We weren’t expecting it to be so strong,’ he added.
Just an hour after the freak storm arrived, it passed – skies were sunny and the waters cleared shortly after.
But the sudden storm prompted multiple water rescues, of those who went overboard from boats, to others who were paddleboarding on the lake.
In a statement, the Coast Guard said: ‘The Coast Guard urges all mariners, experienced or not, to always wear a life jacket, check the weather conditions before heading out on the water, file a float plan, and carry a working VHF radio to call for assistance.’
Party boat operator Chris Williams was on the lake when the weather made a sudden turn.
He told the San Francisco Chronicle: ‘We braved the weather and came back during some severe wave heights that have never been seen on Lake Tahoe.
‘We were pushing the vessels to their maximum capabilities while making sure to keep all clients safely aboard.’
Last summer, six passengers died when the Bayesian superyacht sank off the coast of Italy in a freak storm.
The £30 million vessel capsized with 22 people on board during bad weather while moored off the coast of Sicily.
Civil protection officials said they believe the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.
According to the US National Ocean Service, there are two types of waterspouts — fair-weather and tornadoic.
Tornadic waterspouts have the same characteristics as a land tornado. They are associated with severe thunderstorms and are often accompanied by high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning, the service says on its website.
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