Boat hits large wake and crashes in the Ozarks, killing passenger, Missouri cops say

A man accused of operating a boat while intoxicated crashed into a breakwater on the Lake of the Ozarks, killing a 44-year-old woman, Missouri officials say.

Three others, including the boat operator, were also injured in the crash that happened at 7:40 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26, on the Lake of the Ozarks in Camden County, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Patrol officers said Bobby Childers, 60, was operating a Crownline boat too close to a dock when he struck a large wake, which caused the boat to strike the breakwater.

A breakwater is a fixed structure in the water often made of rock or concrete. They are designed to “alter the effects of waves and slow coastline erosion and change,” according to the National Park Service.

One of the boat’s passengers, 44-year-old Nicolette McKenna, of Sunrise Beach, was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.

Childers, also from Sunrise Beach, and two passengers from Kansas City were taken to a hospital with minor or moderate injuries, according to patrol officers.

At least 11 others were on the boat, and some were thrown into the water or breakwater, firefighters told KRMS Radio. Osage Beach firefighters called the scene “very chaotic,” the radio station reported.

Patrol officers said Childers was arrested and charged with boating while intoxicated causing the death of another and careless and imprudent operation.

Amanda Rae Hartley, McKenna’s sister, said in a Facebook post their other sister also died earlier this year.

“Heaven gained one of the most beautiful and purest hearts,” a loved one said on Facebook.

This story was originally published August 27, 2023 at 2:09 PM with the headline "Boat hits large wake and crashes in the Ozarks, killing passenger, Missouri cops say."