A Dyer County man died Friday morning (7/5/2024) while fishing in Meigs County.
TWRA Officers and local authorities responded to a call around 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time regarding a man overboard at the confluence of the Hiwassee and Tennessee Rivers in Meigs County.
Officers say the man was fishing with a friend and is thought to have suffered a medical emergency when he fell into the water. He was not wearing a life jacket. The angler still on board jumped into the water and pulled the man to the boat where he called 911 and drove towards the Highway 58 boat ramp. The man, thought to be in his mid 70’s, was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to the Meigs County Morgue. His name is being withheld until next of kin are notified. This is the 11th boating related fatality on Tennessee waters this year.
Another tragedy occurred on Tennessee waters Thursday morning (7/4/2024) in Loudon. Officials say 75-year-old James Doyle Frost, of Knoxville, was attempting to tie up his vessel to the dock on Watts Bar Lake when he fell into the water. The TWRA says Mr. Frost did not resurface. His body was recovered shortly after 9am Thursday.
Information on safe boating can be found at tnwildlife.org.