A man drowned in the the Collins River in Warren County today, according to a release from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
Ernest Wade, 59, of Warren County, went kayaking with Treyton Gritzinger at around 8 a.m. this morning, according to the release. After about 30 minutes, Gritzinger saw Wade, who was in a sit-a-top-kayak, hit a small overhanging tree, which caused him to flip over and struggle to swim.
Wade was not wearing a life jacket, and neither man had one with them on the outing.
After searching in the water for some time, Gritzinger called 911 from a nearby home at 8:45 a.m. The Warren County Sheriff’s Office and Warren County Rescue responded and located Wade’s body under six to eight feet of water at around 3:45 p.m. His body was taken to the Warren County morgue.
“Because of recent rains, water levels were elevated two to three feet above normal,” stated the press release. “Swift moving currents and murky water made recovery efforts more difficult.”