Not so long ago, the name Lake Lanier was heading the trending chart of Twitter, and individuals automatically anticipated that yet another inauspicious incident might have taken place. It was disclosed that a blast happened on one boat carrying numerous individuals on the afternoon of 9th May, and six individuals involving two teenagers were severely injured. The authorities had to airlift those injured individuals to the nearby healthcare facility. With the spring season’s arrival and warmer months not so far away, “the curse” related to this body of water in Georgia has brought out its skull yet again. Allegedly, this is why the number of individuals who die here keeps rising. 

The lake present in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Georgia hosts many families every year. It offers 75 recreational spaces involving Islands of Lake Lanier, 40 campgrounds and Corps-operated parks, and even ten marinas. The stretch of its shoreline is approximately 690 miles. Lake Lanier is quite famous for its water which has a mesmerizing aqua-blue color, a ton of recreational activities, and breathtaking scenery. Yet despite its charm, this body of water has taken on one sinister representation because of the alarming amount of unfortunate incidents which have taken place here.

The Loss of Life at Lake Lanier

During the warmer months of the Year 2012, a tragic incident again took place on this lake, a famous body of water in northeast Atlanta. The step-son of famous rapper Usher passed away after suffering from injuries from one jet ski, which ran over the individual when he was enjoying inner tubing.

Another devastation on this lake during that same summer also concluded in the passing away of 2 brothers from Gwinnett County. The male individuals were on one pontoon boat in the presence of their other family members while another boater hit the pontoon, concluding in the death of the male individuals.

As per the Division of Law Enforcement for Natural Resources in Georgia, 57 boating casualties have taken place at this body of water, while 145 individuals have submerged to their ends between the year 1998 and the year 2018.

From the year 2015 to the year 2018, Lake Lanier has witnessed 43 deaths associated with the lake, along with 128 unfortunate events when it comes to boating. On the 26th 26 of the year 2020, one boat, which was 33 feet long, was navigating in the lake and was struck by one 36-foot boat, which was arriving for its assistance. No casualties were declared, yet there were a lot of individuals injured. 

In June 2020, a hit caused the end of the life of one 9-year-old, and even one 13-year-old child went missing the moment the boat struck one pontoon. The number of casualties at this body of water continues to expand each year and jump forward to the 9th May of the year 2021; the corpse of one boater who was 23-year-old, and was missing from this body of water on Saturday, was rescued after almost 24 hours. Officials have stated that the 23-year-old male individual never returned after jumping from that pontoon. 

In another unfortunate incident on 9th May at this lake, one boat exploded, and six individuals involving two teenagers, were seriously injured. One 16-year-old female individual and one 13-year-old male individual were airlifted to one nearby medical care facility, while one 39-year-old female individual was rushed to another Healthcare facility. The explosion occurred as the boat initiated refueling the fuel tank at the gas docks of the Port of Indecision, as per Mark McKinnon, a DNR spokesman.

The other three injured individuals in that hit and the male individual for the hit and run away from that scene yet were arrested later.

Fourteen days after this sad incident, a male individual was injured and passed away in yet another accident on the boat on this lake. Very little information was published beyond the victim’s hometown and that he was drowned after the hit.

Now the query that lingering in each reader’s mind is what makes this body of water in Georgia so dangerous?

A Lake Created on Burial Ground

Lake Lanier is one artificially made body of water built in the 50s to offer hydroelectricity, water, and recreation possibilities to the locals of Sugar Hill, in Gwinnett County, along with the rest of the Metropolis of Atlanta. Many families were relocated from their houses, and new marriage communities were submerged to generate room for this lake. The lake was formally ready in 1957, along with the execution of the Buford Dam via the Corporation of Engineers.

Apart from the buildings, orchards, and farms, many existing churchyards and family burial grounds were also taken over. An approximate 20 burial grounds were affected by the layout of Lake Lanier. But these rearrangements were conducted in one organized manner utilizing maps as one method to evaluate the perimeters of Lake Lanier. Many efforts were put into relocating family burial grounds along with church churchyards. As frequently as feasible, they were relocated to where the other family members were buried. 

Is Lake Lanier Possessed?

Over the decades, many divers have described abnormal glimpses under the murky waters of this lake. There are many videos accessible on YouTube that exhibit houseboats that continue to be drowned in this body of water and detritus. They have also described coming across catfishes as giant as one wagen and feeling disturbing body fragments in this lake water. Buck Buchannon, who has been diving for a long time in one of his question and answer sessions, said that he had vividly felt the eerie sensation in this aqua blue lake water. 

He also said that one reaches out into this murky area, and they will feel a leg or an arm, and it just does not move. That isn’t very pleasant. Many individuals are still carrying the belief that the Spirits of the unidentified corpse are still roaming underneath the charming blue surface. Out of the numerous accidents, drownings, and even suicides, at this body of water, a couple of corpses have not been discovered yet, as to Nicholas Baggett. He is the Army Corporation of Engineers. 

For divers just as Buchannon and numerous others who expressed the same concern that no claimed corpse indicates spookier waters. Their family members or loved ones have not been capable of laying them to rest. Buchannon stated that the remaining of those dead individuals are still present in the depths of Lake Lanier. Hopefully, authorities find those dead individuals before they find someone else. 

Susie Roberts, along with Delia Parker Young 1958, collided not so far away from the Bridge of Jerry Jackson, which is one of the earliest structures of Lake Lanier, when the individuals lost control of the vehicle while running away from one local gas depot without paying. Those female individuals were never able to home. Eighteen months after that incident, the fishers came across the bloated and decomposing body of one female individual floating on the surface of this lake in the absence of any arms and without two toes.  

The croaker could not recognize the corpse, yet the natives near Dawsonville believed that it was Miss Parker. They were assured it was Delia as many drivers passing through the 53rd State Route had witnessed her after her disappearance. She allegedly showed up as one handless ghost who roamed around that highway in one blue dress. The spirit seemed lost, describing numerous individuals who had experienced her presence. 

It did not take long for the legend of Miss Parker to pass off as a myth. Three decades went by since the incident. Susie’s and Delia’s names were not remembered. Around that time, restoration work on that bridge started, and when the construction workers dug through the bottom of this lake, they came across the debris of one Ford model of 1954 that the female individuals were last seen in while speeding away. Also found inside the car were the bones of Miss Roberts, and dental records confirmed the identity. The handless corpse they had entombed in the previous years was re-labeled with the name of Miss Parker. As for Miss Roberts, numerous individuals have stated that she can be found wandering on the backroads of 53rd State Route to this date, making her pathway from Dawsonville Road to the top of that old Bridge. 

Laws to Safeguard the Boaters

In the Gwinnett County bros incident charge of the board, who is currently wiped out from the license registration books to boat in the state of Georgia, was finally charged with assassination by vessel. His trial and his verdict concluded in an absolution on this charge. Instead, he was found blameworthy on lesser allegations.

The allegations on which the justice found the male individual blameable involved operating a boat under the influence of substances, reckless handling of the vessel, and the failure to make aid striking the pontoon afterward, which is similar to one hit and run incident. The retribution for the blameworthy verdict on those allegations was set, and that former boat operator was commanded to be in the service of prison for 30 months. As noted, this male individual is eliminated from boating ever again in Georgia and is also going to conduct community facilities as an aspect of his verdict.

Regrettably, no amount of retribution will ever take place off the three blooming lives sadly cut short in the fateful summer of the year 2012.

The devastating summer of 2012 started with three terrible incidents involving kids present at the lake and 12 casualties within Georgia. Yet, it has since concluded in some positive.

After these deaths, two laws were approved, credit to the push received from the mourning mothers of Griffin Prince, Jake Prince, and Kile Glover. Both mothers of the Prince bros and Kile (the mother of Mr. Kile was earlier in a marital bond with famous wrapper Usher) started working to reconstruct the laws regarding boating in Georgia.

Their efforts concluded in establishing the boat education laws of Kile Glover along with the BUI laws of Griffin and Jake Prince, approved by the legislature of Georgia and signed by Nathan Deal 2013, who was the previous governor of the state.

The new boating laws altered numerous noticeable aspects involving lowering the levels of alcohol present in the blood to .08, which is the same for the handling of any motor transport from the more merciful and previously higher level of .10.

Other provisions currently require children under the age of 13 to put on life jackets while they are present on one boat in motion, either by wave, wind, or motor. When any boat is not anchored, life jackets for children under the age of 13 are currently mandatory. Before these more strict and fresh laws, only children under the age of 10 were needed to put on a life jacket.

Incidences such as these point up the vitality of further advocacy education and safety awareness for boaters, not only because of Lake Lanier deaths but also accidents taking place in other bodies of water throughout Georgia.

Officials of Law enforcement strongly suggest boaters put on life jackets and practice safe boating policies. They also request parents to supervise their children whenever they are near the water or boating without a slip to assist in reducing casualties and injuries.