U.S. Coast Guard: Lake of the Ozarks prime territory for fun and danger

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Long and narrow, lined by docks and bars and crowded with watercraft of all sizes and speeds, Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks is the third-most accident-prone waterway in the country, according to an analysis of U.S. Coast Guard data by The Kansas City Star.

From 1995 through 2004, the newspaper reported Sunday, the Coast Guard's database of serious accidents listed 1,324 on the sprawling mid-Missouri lake -- trailing only the Atlantic Ocean and the Colorado River.

Lake of the Ozarks accounted for half of all serious accidents on Missouri waterways during the 10-year period and was a big reason the landlocked state ranked sixth for such mishaps. Kansas, by contrast, ranked 39th among all states.

Accidents included in the database involved deaths, substantial property damage or other significant circumstances, such as injuries requiring more than first aid.

"People don't know what rough water is until they come here -- including the ocean," said Maj. Tommy Roam, a commander with the Missouri State Water Patrol. "There is just nothing like it anywhere."

There were 39 boating fatalities at the lake from 1995 to 2005, according to the patrol.

Created after the hydroelectric Bagnell Dam was completed 75 years ago, Lake of the Ozarks has about 25,000 docks on its roughly 1,150 miles of twisting shoreline.

The lake's layout and popularity, coupled with ever-increasing boat lengths, help explain why so many outings end with accidents.

In the 92-mile main channel, the lake averages just three-quarters of a mile wide. That leaves little room for waves and wakes to dissipate; the greater the boat congestion, the choppier the water at any given time.

Sgt. Nick Humphrey of the Water Patrol cites another factor -- the number of bars and restaurants on the water. At other lakes, he said, people have to get off the water for those services.

The Water Patrol has had some success in recent years by creating no-wake zones, intended to reduce the odds of watercraft being swamped or tipping.

But there is only so much the patrol can do to enforce rules and take reckless or intoxicated boaters off the water.

Missouri legislators added 11 Water Patrol positions last year, bringing to 99 the total number of uniformed officers statewide. The patrol assigned half of the new positions to Missouri's increasingly popular float streams.

Roam, the Water Patrol commander, said about 20 percent of the agency's uniformed officers are assigned to Lake of the Ozarks.

While big boats capable of creating strong wakes are cited as one reason for the number of serious accidents on the lake, personal watercraft also have a prominent role.

McCaine J. Zimmer, a 31-year-old attorney from Arnold, died on July 4, 2005, while he and a friend were riding Kawasaki Jet Skis. A Water Patrol accident report said Zimmer was in the lead when he turned left, apparently to avoid an oncoming boat. The trailing Jet Ski rammed into him.

Last September, Zachary Strain, 22, of St. Joseph, was killed in a similar crash. The patrol said Strain and two other young men were riding personal watercraft with no navigation lights about 2 a.m. Strain's Sea-Doo was traveling about 50 mph when it collided with another, the patrol said.

Water Patrol officer Kimberly D. Davis, who patrols Smithville Lake north of Kansas City and teaches a boating-safety course, said some personal watercraft now carry mechanisms that can limit maximum speed.

Davis and others also said boater education would reduce accidents.

Missouri and Kansas are among 45 states with mandatory boater-education requirements, according to the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators.

The Missouri law, which took effect last year, requires boat drivers born after Jan. 1, 1984, to pass an approved safety course.

A Kansas law, adopted in 2000, covers people born after Jan. 1, 1989, but does not apply to drivers who are 21 or older.