A 42-year-old man was found dead after he went missing while trying to load his boat at a Tennessee marina, officials said.
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A man died while trying to load his boat in windy weather at a Tennessee marina, officials told news outlets.
A 42-year-old man was backing his truck and trailer into the side boat and tried to load a Bayliner cabin cruiser around 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1, at the Erwin Marina on Chickamauga Lake, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency said, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported.
Eyewitnesses informed the officials about this strong winds were whipping the 30-foot boat The man climbed out to prevent it from hitting the rocks near the marina docks, The Chattanoogan reported. He was not wearing a life jacket.
The the man then disappeared and witnesses called 911, WTVC reported, citing TWRA.
Multiple agencies responded to the marina and the man’s body was “quickly recovered” in about 4 feet of water, officials said, according to the newspaper. His body was taken to the Hamilton County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The man’s name will not be released until his family is notified, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Officials told The Chattanoogan that “this is the 26th boating-related fatality this year.”
As of noon on Sunday, October 2, no other information was available.
Chickamauga Lake is “a 36,200-acre body of water with 810 miles of shoreline,” according to the TWRA website. It is “situated in Rhea, Meigs, Bradley and Polk counties in the southeastern part” of Tennessee.
