Font Size:

This week I took a boat ride with the Washington County Sheriff as deputies showed us the abandoned homes they're patrolling along the Missouri River.  The point is to keep looters away.

We were already warned about the fast-moving river and the danger of debris damaging the boat.  In fact, one of the deputies stood the entire time as a debris look-out.

We put on our life jackets and began recording what we saw.

At one point as we headed upstream against a 17mph current, the nose of the boat really came out of the water as the engine got all its firepower going.  That's when I felt a rush of water flow across my shoes.

I thought, 'Uh oh."

Even though I was wearing a life-jacket, I knew surviving the rash of the Missouri River would be rough -- even with deputies around me.  Then I realized where the water came from -- the water cooler and its melted ice has spilled when we took off.

I felt a little foolish.  And then realized some of the other people on board questioned where the water came from too.