Philadelphia Ride the Ducks amphibious tour bus service has abruptly closed down.
The troubled company said it has suspended operations indefinitely, citing ‘circumstances outside of our control.’
"Continued operations in Philadelphia are not financially feasible at this time," it said in a statement posted on its website, adding that its insurance premium had increased by 330%.
The company, which offered city tours on land and water, had been embroiled in two lawsuits over deadly accidents.
In 2010, two Hungarian students died when one Duck vehicle was hit by a barge on the Delaware River.
A second lawsuit is still ongoing over the death of Elizabeth Karnicki, 68, of Texas, who was struck by a vehicle last year.
Philadelphia attorney Robert Mongeluzzi, who represented victims in both accidents, said the city is safer without the vehicles.
"Through our extensive experience representing victims of duck boat disasters we’ve determined those vehicles are fatally flawed; they’re death traps on the water due to their hazardous canopy design and on land they are engineered to restrict the peripheral vision of the operator, creating significant blind spots," Mongeluzzi said.
The closure of the company will have ‘absolutely no impact on the litigation; the law firm said.
