Wednesday 2 November 2022 11:55 PM America's first EVER casino riverboat which sunk on Mississippi last year is ... trends now
The first-ever riverboat casino to roam the rivers of the United States has reappeared thanks to receding water levels after sinking just a year ago.
The Diamond Lady, which first set sail with its sister boat The Emerald Lady in 1991, was covered in muck and mud when it reemerged.
Rich Westfall, the marketing director for the company that moved the boats from Iowa to Mississippi 30 years ago, said: 'It made my heart sink. I didn’t really know what happened to it.'
In 2008, The Diamond Lady was stored in Lake McKellar off the river, then sank just last year due to a freeze.
The boat became visible again this year due to historically low levels on the Mississippi River.
The first-ever riverboat casino to roam the rivers of the United States has reemerged after sinking just a year ago
The Diamond Lady (pictured left in 1992) has been exposed again as the waters of the Mississippi River receded enough recently
The riverboat, which first set sail with its sister boat The Emerald Lady in 1991, was covered in muck and mud when it was rediscovered
In photos, The Diamond Lady is shown somewhat left in tact, though its smokestacks have depressed and the entire boat has become dirty, though you can still see her name on the hull.
Westfall told NOLA.com that in its original form, The Diamond Lady was 'such a beautifully built riverboat, sturdy and fast.'
The boats were built in Iowa in 1990 by Bernie Goldstein, a man known as the 'father of riverboat gambling.' They were meant to be similar as the boats that ran the river in the late 19th century.
Westfall noted that the boat's ribbon cutting was a huge event, attended by Wheel of Fortune's Vanna White.
The Diamond Lady, like the Emerald Lady, moved southward in 1992 after casino space was limited by Iowa law.
By 2008, The Diamond Lady had been stored in Lake McKellar off the river and sank just last year due to a freeze
The boat became visible again this year due to historically low levels on the
