- A historical marker now sits at Lake Talquin where a boat capsized in 1962.
- The tragedy killed 17 children and their Sunday School teacher on a field trip there.
- Watch the video to learn how the deadly incident played a role in strengthening boating safety legislation in Florida.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A memorial now stands near the shore of Lake Talquin, where a boat capsized in 1962, taking the lives of 17 children and their Sunday School teacher. I’m Kenya Cardonne in the Quincy neighborhood. Survivors, family and friends all tell me it’s a form of closure for this tragic incident and a commemoration for the lessons learned from it.
Remembrance for the day a field trip to Lake Talquin took a morbid turn.
August 18th, 1962— 17 children and their Sunday School teacher would head out on the water, but wouldn’t return after their boat capsized.
Renell Watson Albritton, Survivor - “You would never imagine, knowing at the time that they were falling off that boat, that they weren’t coming back..”
Renell Watson Albritton was also on the Blessed Hope Missionary Baptist Church field trip.
Her decision to pass on the boat ride that day both saved her life and forced her to be the one to tell the story of her seven siblings she lost to the accident.
Albritton - “I was the youngest one left at home and I had no one else to communicate with.”
Saturday, she joined a crowd of fellow survivors, neighbors and officials for a commemoration of the tragedy.
Tears were shed over a documentary of the event, a candle-lit memorial on the water and a new historical marker meant to keep the story alive for years to come.
Jerome Maples, Son of Lone Survivor - “We’re feeling honored and great, you know, great that we were able to bring closure to a lot of people and making sure that this history isn't forgotten.”
Jerome Maples is the son of the only person to make it out alive when the boat capsized. His father has since passed.
Maples - “I think my Dad would be proud. You know, I think he’d be proud that we're remembering so many of his friends and his mentor.”
Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission say the memorial also served to highlight the silver lining of it all.
Bill Holcomb, Major with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission - “The current requirement now is that there has to be a wearable life jacket for every person on board.”
Mandated improvements in boating safety just a year later would play a role in preventing history from repeating itself.
Holcomb - “And this tragic case had a lot to do with the legislation that led to that in the state of Florida.”
An example of resilience and an important lesson for families everywhere to give their children life-saving skills.
Albritton - “Take them somewhere to learn how to swim. Because if [the victims] would’ve known how to swim, they would’ve been able to come back home to us.”
Another memorial for this event lives at Blessed Hope Missionary Baptist Church.
In Quincy, Kenya Cardonne ABC 27.
