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Georgia Memorial Day weekend boating drownings, BUIs reported from DNR

10 of those 40 were on Lake Lanier according to the department.

ATLANTA — Georgia Department of Natural Resources released their incident report for Memorial Day weekend - boating under the influence being the highest total. 

Around Saturday on Memorial Day weekend, DNR officials made 16 boating under the influence arrests, already higher than 2021.

Another 24 hours later, the number of BUIs jumped to 31, and the final total is 40. This is a stark difference from 15 BUI arrests in 2021.

The department said they are going to crack down on drinking and boating after a number of tragic deaths over the holiday weekend.

At least five people died after two motorboats crashed Saturday along the Wilmington River. Four of the victims were members of the same family. A 45-year-old Savannah man was arrested and accused of boating while under the influence.

Georgia DNR listed eight lakes as the most popular or busy along with numbers on drownings, BUIs, incidents, injuries and fatalities. 

Lakes named were:

  1. Allatoona 
  2. Blackshear 
  3. Clarks Hill 
  4. Hartwell 
  5. Jackson
  6. Lanier
  7. Oconee
  8. Sinclair

The lake with the most BUIs was Lake Lanier with 10, and Lake Blackshear second with five. 

   

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