Tia Coleman files federal lawsuit against company in deadly duck boat incident

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — An Indiana woman whose husband and three children drowned when a duck boat sank in a Missouri lake during a July storm is asking in a federal lawsuit that the owners of the amphibious vehicles stop manufacturing or operating them in the U.S. and other countries until they are redesigned to be safe.

Tia Coleman, of Indianapolis, filed the lawsuit Tuesday against Ripley Entertainment and five other companies that manufacture and operate the Ride The Ducks tourist attraction.

Besides her husband and children, Coleman lost five relatives on the boat . Seventeen people died when the boat sank July 19 at Table Rock Lake in Branson. Coleman is seeking financial damages but the lawsuit does not specify the amount.

Ripley Entertainment did not immediately respond to a request for comment.