Man drowns reaching for pool noodle in Georgia lake’s 6th death of 2021, officials say
A 55-year-old paddle boarder drowned on a Georgia lake Friday after going in after a pool noodle, officials say.
Jeffrey McElfresh of Louisville, Kentucky, was paddle boarding at West Bank Park on Lake Lanier when the pool noodle he had with him started floating away, Mark McKinnon, spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division, told McClatchy News.
McElfresh tried to get the pool noodle back but “became tired and went under,” McKinnon said Sunday. He “reappeared shortly after” but went under again and didn’t resurface.
Game wardens were called to the area about a “possible drowning” around 4:30 p.m., McKinnon said. McElfresh’s body was found shortly after and was recovered by divers with Hall County Fire Service.
McKinnon said there have been six deaths reported on Lake Lanier so far this year, including four boating fatalities and two drownings.
On Thursday, officials recovered the body of a 24-year-old South Carolina man who went missing in April after the wind pushed him away from his boat on the lake, McClatchy reported.
Two fatalities were also reported on Lake Lanier over the Fourth of July weekend, local outlet 11Alive reported.
In May, officials recovered the body of a 19-year-old who went under while trying to swim across a cove, McClatchy News reported.
Also in May, a 23-year-old died after jumping off a boat into Lake Lanier, WSBTV reported.
“It is a very large lake, and I believe the busiest lake east of the Mississippi. There’s about 8 million visitors a year to Lake Lanier ... so there’s a lot of traffic,” McKinnon told McClatchy in April.
Lake Lanier is in northern Georgia, about 50 miles from Atlanta.
This story was originally published July 18, 2021 at 2:53 PM with the headline "Man drowns reaching for pool noodle in Georgia lake’s 6th death of 2021, officials say."
