Ashland City, TN - What began as a day of celebration turned tragic for two families in Middle Tennessee this Fourth of July, as two separate water-related fatalities were reported within hours of each other.

The most recent incident occurred Friday afternoon near the Cheatham Lock and Dam on the Cumberland River in Cheatham County. A 13-year-old boy drowned after falling from a buoy marking the boundary between shallow and deeper water. Witnesses say the teen had been playing in the designated beach area when he slipped into a sudden drop-off and disappeared beneath the surface around 1:08 p.m. His body was recovered by emergency crews at approximately 3:10 p.m., despite extensive search efforts.

Earlier in the holiday weekend, a 57-year-old Brentwood woman, identified as Mary Beth Foran, died in a boating accident on Center Hill Lake near Hurricane Marina. According to investigators, she jumped from a ski boat and was fatally struck by the vessel’s propeller. Her death marks the 13th boating-related fatality in Tennessee this year.

These two incidents underscore the dangers of holiday recreation on Tennessee’s lakes and rivers, especially during high-traffic weekends like the Fourth of July.