LEXINGTON COUNTY, S.C. — The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) is investigating several weekend boating incidents across the Midlands and Upstate that resulted in one death and several injuries.
Early Saturday morning, at approximately 1 a.m., SCDNR officers responded to Tom Drafts Point off Lake Murray in Gilbert for a single-boat accident resulting in one fatality.
Kathryn Grayce Mullins, 20, of Statesboro, Georgia, was pronounced dead at an area hospital due to blunt force trauma, according to Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher.
Officials say the driver of a pontoon boat was reportedly preparing to dock when the engine cut off. While trying to restart the engine and gain control of the boat, the boat drifted into a dead tree on the edge of the lake which broke off and fell on Mullins, who was a passenger in the boat.
The investigation into the incident is continuing.
Also on Saturday, at approximately 10 p.m. on Saturday, SCDNR responded to the area of Holly Ferry and Sunny Point in Saluda County for a collision between two boats. A bass boat and a pontoon boat which were both underway, collided, injuring four people.
One person is in serious, but non-life-threatening, condition at this time. The other three individuals have been released from the hospital.
Investigators determined alcohol was not a factor in this crash. The incident remains under investigation.
In Greenville County, SCDNR officers responded to a tubing accident on Lake Lanier Sunday morning. Two juveniles were on a tube being pulled by a 16-foot boat when the tube collided with a docked boat on the lake.
At this time, one juvenile is in critical condition. The other juvenile suffered a broken leg. This incident is remains investigation.
