On the 16th of July, at approximately 15:00 hours, there was a boating accident on the Yellowstone River. The boat turned to it’s side and capsized.  I learned of this event on the 20th of July by a third party and contacted the Sherriff''s office for more information. I then called the boat''s operator for an interview. The following is an account of the events as told to me by the operator of the boat on July 20th: 

The boat operator was piloting the boat up stream near the old Fort Keogh Bridge. The operator''s 20 year old daughter was onboard the vessel. He felt his steering get a little loose then the boat suddenly jerked to the right and then capsized. The operator believes that a pin on his rudder or shaft broke which caused the rudder to turn suddenly. The boat was traveling at approximately 25 miles an hour. After hitting the water they were then able to swim to shore. Neither of them were hurt. Witnesses in the area attempted to help the operator recover the boat and did recover some of the belongings but the boat was too swamped and was taken down stream by the current.

I later learned from witnesses that there were 4 individuals on the boat. The other 2 were uninjurned.

After the boat capsized, it floated downstream approximately 4.4 miles and was located across from Pirogue Island State Park on a sand bar. 


On July 27th, myself, game warden captain and game warden sergeant took a jet boat to the resting location of the boat. The pictures of the boat in the water were taken by me that day. The pictures of the boat on the trailer were taken by the boat operator.

Yellowstone
MILES CITY                    