Two boating accidents in 24 hours at Lake of the Ozarks

It was a dangerous weekend on the water at the Lake of the Ozarks. Officials said there were two boating accidents in 24 hours, one happening Saturday morning and the other on Sunday afternoon.

“I was scared that I was going to be seeing people dying right in front of me and I couldn’t do anything about it, ” said Gina Mclaughlin, who witnessed the second boat accident on Sunday.

Mclaughlin said she was in her home when she heard a loud noise and looked outside at the water.

“I saw this boat losing control, sliding sideways and then just going over and over and end in a roll,” she said. “It was terrifying.”

Mclaughlin said after the boat flipped she saw one man in the water yelling for help. Half of the speed boat was submerged in water.

Witnesses say the boat was in the shootout boat race taking place at the lake. Organizers said the boat was not competing at the time of the accident.

Mclaughlin said the two men looked happy to be alive.

“When he got up onto the pontoon boat and saw the other gentleman, they hugged each other,” she said. “It was really touching.”

Another boat accident yesterday happened during the shootout boat race. Two people were in the boat at the time.

One had to be rescued and was flown to University Hospital in critical condition.

Organizers said this is only the second accident in the 26 year history of the boat race. They said the event is safe, but accidents like these can happen.

“The boat was traveling at excess of 170 miles per hour when the accident happened,” said Sunrise Beach Fire Chief Dennis Reilly. “I think when you move at those type of speeds in the machine there is always the possibility for something to happen.”

Officials have not yet confirmed the current conditions of the man flown the University Hospital yesterday.