20 years ago 'Slow Motion' reigned as #1 song and Dave Matthews' bus rained #2 on a tour boat
It was 20 years ago when a Dave Matthews Band tour bus dumped 800 pounds of human waste onto dozens of people under the Kinzie Street Bridge in Chicago while they were out sightseeing on a tour boat — giving horrible new meaning to the term "poop deck."
On Aug. 8, 2004, the band's bus driver mistakenly toggled a switch that opened the bus's septic tank, The Chicago Tribune reported, releasing the equivalent of 55 gallons of sand onto roughly 120 passengers taking a tour of the Windy City. Roughly two-thirds of the people seated on the upper deck of the vessel were soaked.
For a while, no one knew who was responsible for the dumping, according to the news outlet. The incident was later connected to the band, resulting in criminal charges, a lawsuit, apologies and what we suspect were a lot of dry cleaning bills.
Dave Matthews Band later settled with the state of Illinois, according to The Chicago Tribune, while the driver pleaded guilty to reckless conduct and pollution charges.
On Thursday's anniversary, people marked the occasion of the now infamous moment on social media. Here are some of the posts that 'crashed' into our feed.
What social media users are saying about the Dave Matthews Band bus moment
“Oh, interesting. Dave Matthews is trending.”
Clicks https://t.co/gF5CdU0DOEpic.twitter.com/pcqqW71ls5— Christopher Lynn (@TheCDLynn) August 8, 2024
20 years ago today, Dave Matthews Band's tour bus emptied its septic tank over the Chicago River, drenching unsuspecting tourists on a boat tour with 800 pounds of human waste. pic.twitter.com/HDtMDRgea3
— CONSEQUENCE (@consequence) August 8, 2024
Happy 20th Anniversary of the Dave Matthews Poop Incident to all who celebrate pic.twitter.com/tXRDleg3vK
— Spaghetti (@SpaghettiC11) August 8, 2024
20 years ago today, the Dave Matthews Band tour bus ruined an architecture tour. pic.twitter.com/c3MTUlYYmo
— Gummy Arts (@gummyarts) August 8, 2024
Dave Matthews is trending. I don’t understand why people still hate Nickelback, but at least Nickelback didn’t dump 800 pounds of human waste on people on a boat.
— Mandy the Angel Hamster 🟦 #RideOrDieForHarris2024 (@CastielsHamster) August 8, 2024
Dave Matthews Band River Incident to the tune of @BeeGees "New York Mining Disaster 1941".
Happy anniversary to all who celebrate (please don't dump raw sewage into a river or lake).— titane, veut le ciel ⭕🌼⭕🌷⭕🌻 (@erranttraveller) August 8, 2024
Dave Matthews Band has been emptying a musical septic tank on its audiences for far longer than two decades.
— NYCTaper (@nyctaper) August 8, 2024
It's been 20 years since the Dave Matthews Band craptacular bridge incident. pic.twitter.com/ypAl4A8FEM
— hidanas.bsky.social (@Hiddanas) August 8, 2024
Live your life in such a way that multiple people wish you a happy Dave Matthews band bus incident of August 2004 anniversary
— Lindsay Fickas (@lindsayfickas) August 8, 2024
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Natalie Neysa Alund with USA TODAY contributed to this article.
John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at JTuftsReports.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Dave Matthews Band bus dumped poop on Chicago tour boat passengers
