It's been ten years since Liverpool's famous Yellow Duckmarines took their last splash in the water.
From the early 2000s, it was one of the most popular and recognisable tourist attractions in Liverpool, turning heads whenever it embarked on its tours around the city. A day trip to town wouldn't be complete without a glimpse of the Duckmarine tours winding along the city streets, or theatrically dunking into the dock waters as it morphed into a waterbound vessel, the ECHO previously reported.
But its origins went back much further. Before their days as leisure cruisers operating on land and water - giving premier views of the Salt house, Wapping, Queens and Coburg Docks, and the Albert Dock - the Ducks were originally called DUKWs when created in the US to transport men and materials during World War II.
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In 2001, four of the ex-military DUKWS were updated and refitted to begin life as the Yellow Duckmarine fleet. Affectionately known as ‘Wacker Quacker’ and numbered 1,2,3 and 4, the Yellow Duckmarines are still fondly remembered and attracted thousands of locals, tourists and even famous faces in its time.
In 2012, late Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip, took a trip around Albert Dock for a half-hour ride as part of her Diamond Jubilee tour of Merseyside. At the time, thousands gathered at the dock to cheer the Queen who looked apprehensive as the customised boat, originally designed in the 1940s, made its 'splashdown' in the world heritage site waters.
Other famous faces to take a trip on a Yellow Duckmarine tour include singer and TV presenter Aled Jones and The Only Way Is Essex's Mark Wright. But after over a decade in business, the Yellow Duckmarine's found themselves in troubled water.
The fate of the much-loved attraction started to turn in March 2013, when the bus-boat slowly began to sink one Saturday afternoon as it made its way around the docks. At the time, the ECHO reported: "People on board were moved onto a pontoon in accordance with safety procedures.
The amphibious vehicle then sank as it was being towed away. Onlookers told how the Duckmarine, affectionately known as a Wacker Quacker, eventually became fully submerged during attempts to tow it to the slipway in Salthouse Dock.
"Roger O’Doherty, who had been attending the NUT conference at the ECHO Arena, said: "They got a tow boat to try and pull it onto the slipway but they were going quite quickly and it unhinged. The water was up to the level of the windows"
The bus-boats were grounded while a safety check took place. In April that year, three of the four-strong fleet were back on the streets of Liverpool city centre – but they stopped short of entering dock waters until an investigation to find the cause was completed. The full tour normally lasted 55 minutes, but tourists were being offered reduced rates for the shortened tour, taking in the Liver Buildings, St George’s Hall and Chinatown.
Following an investigation by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, three of the four vessels were cleared to return to the water and resumed the famed ‘splashdown’ in late May of the same year.
However in June, disaster struck once more as one of the boats began to sink with over 30 passengers on board - all of whom were rescued by nearby narrowboats and fire crews. At the time, heroic barge owners spoke of the dramatic moment they hauled passengers to safety.
Jackie and Cyril Clark used their boat Predator 3 to pull 17 people out of the water to safety. Eyewitness Phil Lennon said that the emergency response was really impressive and "everyone came together to help."
Do you remember the Yellow Duckmarines? Let us know in the comments section below.
With the second sinking in three months, the Duckmarine tours were hit with stern opposition while investigations into the sinking were on-going.
Then Mayor Joe Anderson outlined the need for the tours to “end” and how the vehicles would be best placed in a museum given their age. It's now been ten years since the fateful sinking of June 2013 which became the last time the Ducks could be seen splashing down into the water.
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The tour operator, Pearlwild, had its licence to run on roads revoked that same year and fell into administration with the four boats being seized. In 2015, a bid to return the Wacker Quackers to the water was rejected, however plans to resume the tours were announced in January 2021 with hopes of seeing the famed Yellow Duckmarines back in their natural habitat.
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