SAVANNAH (AP) – Searchers recovered the bodies of three missing boaters on Sunday after two vessels collided on a Georgia river, bringing the crash’s death toll to five people. One of the surviving boaters was charged with boating under the influence.
Two people were found dead shortly after the Saturday collision on the Wilmington River near Savannah, authorities said.
The bodies of the three missing people were recovered on Sunday morning, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Sergeant Cindy Miller told WTOC-TV. They were found in water about 4.3 metres deep, and in close proximity to each other, authorities said.
One of the boats had six people aboard and the other carried three people, the United States Coast Guard said in a statement.
At least four people were taken to hospitals, authorities said.
Mark Christopher Stegall, 45, has been charged with boating under the influence, Mark McKinnon of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources told WSAV-TV.
No lawyer who could speak on Stegall’s behalf is listed in Chatham County Jail booking records. The names of others involved were not immediately made public.
