A fishing trip on Watts Bar Reservoir ended in tragedy Sunday night when a 59-year-old man was found dead after being reported overdue by family members.
According to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, game wardens responded around 8:30 p.m. Sunday to a Tennessee Valley Authority boat ramp on Highway 68 after receiving a report that Leyroy Fairbanks had not returned from a fishing trip as expected.
TWRA officials said Fairbanks’ family went to the boat ramp he had used and discovered his boat adrift and still idling on the reservoir.
“The family went to the ramp used by Fairbanks and discovered his boat idling, adrift,” the agency said.
Rescue crews launched a search and were able to recover Fairbanks’ body from the water.
Investigators noted that Fairbanks was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident.
Multiple agencies assisted in the response, including Meigs County Rescue, Rhea County Rescue, local fire departments and sheriff’s deputies, working alongside TWRA personnel.
The incident remains under investigation.
According to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Fairbanks’ death marks the 19th boating-related fatality in Tennessee this year. Wildlife officials routinely encourage boaters and anglers to wear life jackets while on the water, noting that they remain one of the most effective ways to prevent drowning deaths.
