BUFORD — The Georgia Department of Natural Resources releases a report on the number of boating incidents across the state over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. The identity of the adult male who drowned at Shoal Creek Park on Lake Lanier has also been released.
On Saturday night, local rescue teams converged on Shoal Creek Park off Shadburn Ferry Road in Buford to search for a man who jumped off his raft to retrieve an oar and never resurfaced.
DNR immediately began to use side-search sonar to try and locate the victim, who has been identified as Xi Zhu, 56, of Marietta.
Crews have been searching for Zhu’s body but have been unable to find him. According to Mark McKinnon, public affairs officer with the Georgia DNR, the area in which they think the victim’s body is located has standing trees on the lake bottom making search efforts more complicated.
Two others drowned in Georgia’s waterways over the holiday weekend. A three-year-old male drowned on Carter’s Lake in Murray County. He was found unresponsive in the water and immediately, family members, a Murray County deputy and Corps of Engineers officers tried to revive the toddler with no luck.
The second drowning victim incident took place in Lumpkin County at Dick’s Creek, where a 15-year-old male was swimming with family, slipped on a rock and went under. Lumpkin County Fire recovered the victim a short time later and the body was turned over to the county coroner. The identity has not been released.
