Free Republic

OSAGE BEACH, Mo.—The petite blonde bartender in ripped jean shorts bounced to each side of a square-shaped bar as women in bikinis and shirtless men lined up on a sweltering afternoon to order Bud Light, vodka and soda, and piles of nachos at this dockside retreat in the Lake of the Ozarks region. In a county designated a Covid hot spot, in a state with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the nation, and in a region where hospitals are nearing capacity as the Delta variant takes hold, Erin, a bartender at Backwater Jack’s, couldn’t be in a more...

Scott Pasmore, an anchor for CNN affiliate KTVK, shot the video at Backwater Jacks Bar & Grill in Osage Beach on Saturday. The gathering violates social distancing measures intended to limit the spread of Covid-19. As part of Missouri's reopening plan announced earlier this month, state officials said restaurants may offer dining-in services but must adhere to social distancing and other precautionary public health measures. The bar posted on Facebook that this was its launch of a summer party called "Zero Ducks Given Pool Party." It advertised several DJs and bands performing throughout the event. "The venue has worked with...

BRANSON — Eleven people, including at least one child, are dead after an amphibious duck boat capsized Thursday evening on Table Rock Lake. At least seven other passengers were injured, including one in serious condition. Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader updated the casualty information just after 11 p.m. Thursday. The Ride the Ducks tourist boat sank near the Showboat Branson Belle with a reported 31 people on board. Rader said emergency personnel were still searching for at least five people. CoxHealth said in a statement victims were being treated at Cox Branson. Spokeswoman Kaitlyn McConnell said the patients were a...