The State : Tour Boat Hits Sand; 14 Hurt

A Colorado River tour boat rammed a sand bar, tossing passengers from their seats and injuring 14 of 44 on board, authorities said. None of the crew or passengers on the two-hour sightseeing tour out of Laughlin, Nev., appeared to have life-threatening injuries, said San Bernardino County sheriff’s spokesman Jim Bryant. The injured were taken to Needles Desert Community Hospital. The boat was on a tour that normally leaves Laughlin, turns around under the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., and returns to Laughlin. The boat, about 50 feet long, is owned by Laughlin River Tours Inc., said a company official who refused to give her name or comment further. “They got down there and were coming back. The water is low now. The captain saw the sand and sped up the vessel to lift the boat over the sand bar,” Bryant said. “But it didn’t lift. It was going a pretty good speed. The people on board in chairs got tossed around like ballast,” Bryant said.