An infamous anniversary passed yesterday,June 17th, almost unnoticed, unless you were part of the tragedy that day. Forty-six years ago yesterday was the deadliest water disaster in Kansas history. About 60 passengers and crew members were aboard the double-decked showboat Whippoorwill, on Pomona Lake, where guests planned to dine and see a nightly Vassar Playhouse performance of the musical “Dames At Sea.”
The area was under a severe thunderstorm watch, but it wasn’t raining. Shortly before 7:00, about 15 minutes into the cruise, the crew saw a small F1 tornado come from the clouds across the lake. It strengthened as it raced toward the boat. The skipper turned the paddleboat to head for shore but couldn’t get it out of the way. The tornado capsized the showboat, killing 16 people on board. After the tornado moved away, rescuers began to pick survivors off from the hull of the capsized ship. One rescuer, the owner of Lighthouse Bay Marina, and diver, Lawrence Stadel, dove under the boat and found two more survivors, trapped in air pockets. The tornado that capsized the boat later caused minimal damage to mobile homes before dissipating.
The National Weather Service says that this incident shows that all tornadoes, no matter how small or short-lived, demand our respect and have the potential to cause damage and death, even if they do not make a direct strike.
