Sometime on the night of 3/6/10 or the early morning hours of 3/7/10, operator and occupant were fishing near what is commonly referred to as Pinnacle Pointe on Lake Tobesofkee. The men were in Operator's 1991 Artcraft bass boat. At some point in the trip, the men realized that the boat was taking on water and that the bilge area had become swamped. It appears, by evidence in the boat, that the two men made preparations to return to the boat ramp after realizing the trouble. Due to the boat having already taken on a great quantity of water, when the two men moved to the rear of the boat, it appears that the stern of the boat went under causing the bow of the vessel to rise. At some point during the sinking, the two men went into the water without wearing a PFD. Both men were dressed in bulky insulated coveralls and had on heavy boots. One family member that this investigator spoke with stated that Operator could not swim and that he wasn't sure if occupant could swim or not. The previous mentioned factors led to the two individuals accidentally drowning during the sinking of the vessel. operator was recovered on 3/7/10 at approximately 1300 hours and occupant was recovered on 3/9/10 at approximately 1600 hours.
Macon                         