Vessel 1 was traveling upstream on the Hiwassee River approximately 2 miles west of the Highway 58 bridge when V1 encountered a large wake from a downbound large vessel.  The wake from the unknown vessel caused V1 to collide with a navigation buoy making a whole in the hull on the starboard side of the bow and causing damage to its lower unit.  The accident occurred in a portion of the river where the main channel is narrow and the waters outside the main channel are very shallow.
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