The Memorial Day weekend got off to a deadly start on Georgia’s waterways with six people confirmed dead. Five of the deaths occurred Saturday morning when two boats collided on the Wilmington River in Georgia’s coastal Chatham County.
The two center console boats, carrying a total of nine passengers, were traveling in opposite directions when they crashed, witnesses said. There were six people in one boat and three in the other.
Two people died at the scene and three were missing. Searchers located their bodies nearly 24 hours later.
“All three missing victims were located by game wardens at approximately 9 a.m. Sunday in 14-foot deep water and in close proximity to each other,” says Mark McKinnon, a spokesperson for the law enforcement division of Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources. “The bodies were recovered by Chatham County Marine Patrol divers.”
Four family members are among the deceased. Sunday afternoon officials identified them as Christopher David Leffler, age 51, of Savannah; Lori Lynn Leffler, age 50, of Savannah; Zachary James Leffler, age 23, of Alpharetta; Nathan Leffler, age 17, of Savannah; and Robert Steven Chauncey, age 37, of Savannah.
The other four passengers suffered various injuries and were transported to a Savannah hospital for treatment.
The cause of the crash is currently under investigation by the Georgia DNR Law Enforcement Critical Incident Reconstruction Team (CIRT).
A Coast Guard Air Station Savannah helicopter aircrew searches for three men in the Wilmington River in Savannah, Georgia, May. 28, 2022. Two boats collided and three men were missing in the river. (U.S. Coast Guard video courtesy of Air Station Savannah)
A Coast Guard Air Station Savannah helicopter aircrew hoists a man from the Wilmington River in Savannah, Georgia, May. 28, 2022. The man was taken to Memorial Health University Center. (U.S. Coast Guard video courtesy of Air Station Savannah)
Boy drowns
In Northwest Georgia’s Bartow County, a 5-year-old boy drowned in Clear Creek on Lake Allatoona. Georgia DNR game wardens responded to the scene just after 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 28.
According to witnesses, the boy was playing on a float in the lake and a few minutes later he was missing from the float. Game wardens used side-scan sonar to search for him. After two hours, they located his body in approximately six feet of water and divers recovered his body.
Elsewhere, on Northeast Georgia’s Lake Lanier, a kayaker suffered a serious foot injury in a collision with a ski boat near Three Sisters Island. McKinnon says there was also a minor boat collision with no injuries near Margaritaville at Lake Lanier Islands.
On Saturday, DNR game wardens reported 16 BUIs, five of them on Lake Lanier.
Officials urge Georgians to obey the law and follow safe boating practices: Don’t drink and drive and always wear a life jacket.
This article has been updated with additional information
