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Missing boy found in Current River

July 6, 2009 By

The Missouri Water Patrol reports three people died on Missouri waterways over the holiday weekend.

Ashley Gustafson, age 16, of Hollister, died early this morning after being pulled out of four feet of water at Table Rock Lake Sunday. Gustafson was reportedly swimming with her family when it was discovered she was missing. Her brother, Cody Underwood, found her on the bottom of the lake. She was taken to Skaggs medical center in Branson before being transferred to St. John’s in Springfield. Sources close to the family say Gustafson had a history of suffering from seizures.

Sgt. Jerry Callahan with the Missouri Water Patrol says one man and a juvenile were killed on the Current River in a separate incident when two boats collided.

Josh Burson, 25, and Jerry Mote, 11, both of Poplar Bluff, were killed in that collision, which threw them both overboard. Mote’s body was just found this afternoon about a half mile from where the crash happened. Callahan says his body was found caught in a root wad.

Callahan says alcohol is being considered a contributing factor in the crash.

Callahan says fatalities and accident numbers this year are close to those reported last year. But he says 33 people were arrested for boating while intoxicated, a big drop from the 54 arrested in 2008.

For more details, visit the Missouri Water Patrol’s Web site, where incident reports are listed: www.mswp.dps.mo.gov

Sgt. Jerry Callahan talks about weekend accidents [Download/listen Mp3 - 3 minutes]

Filed Under: Transportation Tagged With: , ,

Operation Dry Water nets 17 arrests

June 29, 2009 By

As a part of Operation Dry Water, a nationwide campaign to enforce safer boating, the Missouri State Water Patrol conducted five sobriety check points throughout the state over the weekend, June 26 through 28.

The check points were in conjunction with a nationwide campaign, "Operation Dry Water," that 49 other states and U.S. territories participated in. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of and to decrease the incidence of intoxicated operation of vessels.

Check points were conducted at Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake, Mark Twain Lake, Pomme De Terre Lake and Smithville Lake.

Law enforcement officers stopped 343 boats and arrested 17 boat operators for boating while intoxicated. Seventeen other citations were issued for equipment violations and 62 warnings were issued. 

Officers were checking boat safety equipment in conjunction with field sobriety tests, making sure flares, fire extinguishers, personal safety devices and sounding devices, such as air horns, were in accordance with the legal specifications.

There was one drowning this weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks "Party Cove," and authorities believe alcohol consuption might have been a contributing factor. It’s a situation that drives home the importance of knowing the limits while mixing water with alcohol, says Sgt. Jerry Callahan, spokesman for the Missouri Water Patrol.

Todd Cornine, 33, of Richmond, never resurfaced after jumping from a boat into the water Saturday. The Water Patrol dragged the area and his body was recovered about an hour later, about 9 p.m. Saturday.

Sgt. Jerry Callahan talks about Operation Dry Water, weekend drowning

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With: ,

Missouri waterways fatal for three, several ticketed

May 26, 2009 By

Three people died on Missouri waterways over the Memorial Day weekend.

Sergeant Jerry Callahan with the Missouri State Water Patrol says Sridhar Tekula, 27, and Suresh Merumu, 30, of St. Louis drowned while swimming on the Meremac in Franklin County. Four-year-old Margaret Murphy of Wildwood drowned when the canoe she was in capsized and jammed under logs, pinning her underneath.

Callahan says the Water Patrol also responded to 13 boating accidents throughout the state … eight injuries were reported.

Last year’s holiday weekend there were also 13 boating accidents resulting in four injuries. One person drowned.

The Water Patrol begins its counting period at midnight Friday and ends it at 5 p.m. Monday. 

Callahan says all of the fatalities occurred on the Meremac. He says swift currents played a part, but that the waters were not abnormally rough.

The two men were not wearing life jackets. The 4-year-old girl from Wildwood was wearing a life jacket, but because she was pinned underwater, it did not save her life.

Margaret Murphy was with four other children and an adult in the canoe.

When the canoe tipped, the patrol says, the adult – 43-year-old Kimberly Kocur of Millstone, N.J. – was able to grab two of the kids and swim to shore. Two of the other children were assisted to shore by other adults on the scene, the patrol says. That’s when Margaret’s father, Patrick Murphy, pulled her from about 6 feet of water.

She was taken to Missouri Baptist Hospital, the patrol says, where she was pronounced dead.

Callahan says the patrol handed out 23 citations for boating under the influence, the majority of them on the Lake of the Ozarks, he says, because that’s where the biggest concentration of boaters gather in the state.


Jessica Machetta interviews Sergeant Jerry Callahan

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , ,

Talburt leaves Water Patrol after almost 30 years

March 18, 2009 By

On the heels of Governor Nixon announcing several department leadership appointments, Missouri’s Water Patrol commander is retiring after serving almost 30 years.

Missouri Water Patrol Commander Rad Talburt says he was told Friday that the Governor wanted to put someone else at the helm, and that he’s OK with that and has had a great career with no regrets. He says he’ll look back on his career with fondness.

He says he’s getting his retirement papers ready, but that he’s not one to sit around and wants to find something else, though he’s not sure it will be in law enforcement. "I like to stay busy," he says.

Talburt admits that after so many years of enforcing the law on Missouri’s waters, he’s ready to enjoy them as a civilian.

"Spring fishing season is coming up and that’s something I’ve been looking forward to," he says.

He says the Patrol has come a long way in the past four years under his direction. The Lake of the Ozarks was listed in 2006 as the most dangerous locked body of water in the nation, but last year Missouri had the third least water fatalities.

In 2006, there were eight fatalities, he says, and working with the Lake of the Ozarks Safety Coalition, the following year there was only one water-related death there.

Talburt says the most enjoyable part of his job was working with top-notch officers, and it has been like working with a family. He credits the success of his leadership to the support of those he works with, as well as the communities he’s served.

Talburt says he was offered the chance to come back on with the water patrol as a lieutenant, but that he chose to go ahead and retire and do something else.

No word yet on who will replace him to lead the patrol.

Jessica Machetta reports [Download/listen MP3]

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

Divers recover body of boy killed in helicopter accident

May 26, 2008 By

Divers recovered the body of a 9-year-old boy killed in a helicopter crash at the Lake of the Ozarks Sunday night.

State Water Patrol Captain Matt Walz says divers found the body of Zachary West of Eureka still in the wreckage. He couldn’t free himself from the helicopter after it crashed into the lake. The pilot, another adult and two other children did manage to escape the chopper and swim to the surface where boaters rescued them. None of the survivors suffered serious injuries. Walz says none sought hospitalization.

The helicopter is being pulled from the lake. The wreckage will be stored in a state facility for officials with the National Transportation Safety Board to inspect.

Walz says witnesses have told the patrol that the helicopter was hovering over the surface of the water when it began spinning out of control. It spun in circles several times before crashing into the surface of the lake.

Filed Under: Transportation Tagged With: , ,
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