Sep 6, 2020 - Politics & Policy
"No evidence of foul play": Travis County sheriff issues statement on Trump boat parade
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The Travis County Sheriff's Office in Austin, Texas, announced that no injuries or deaths resulted from five boats sinking at a Trump boat parade on Lake Travis on Saturday, and that there is "no evidence of foul play."
The big picture: The sheriff's office said it responded to 15 "distress calls" after waves generated by the large number of boats moving together caused several vessels to be swamped by water. Three of the boats that sank were towed out and two remain submerged.
What they're saying:
"At 12:00 pm on Saturday, September 5, 2020, a boat parade in support of President Trump got underway on Lake Travis. ...
Almost immediately upon the parade going into motion, TCSO began receiving distress calls from boaters. The first call came in at 12:15 pm, and the last distress call associated with the parade came in a 1:53 pm. The distress calls varied and included: boats taking on water, stalled engines, capsized boats and boats sinking. TCSO responded to 15 distress calls and received three additional reports of boats taking on water from a local towing company.
According to reports received by TCSO, five boats sank during the event. Three were tore out and two remain submerged. All the distress calls were resolved without injury or loss of life. Most boats that were taking on water, or even fully submerged, were able to be hooked up and towed before they sank to the bottom of the lake.
Weather conditions on Lake Travis were calm. When the large number of boats began moving together, the wakes generated large waves in areas where participating boats were dense. TCSO has found no evidence of foul play associated with any of the incidents."
