CHAPIN, S.C. — State officials are investigating after a man drowned at Lake Murray in a boating accident Monday.
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources officers responded to a call of a missing boater around 3 p.m. near Willow Cove in Chapin, according to Capt. Robert McCullough. Two men were in a 14-foot Jon boat when the winds picked up on the lake and the boat began to take on water. The boat ended up sinking and one of the men was rescued by a nearby boater, while the other man in the Jon boat went underwater. According to reports, neither men were wearing life jackets.
The body of the drowned man was recovered later that afternoon. Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher has identified the man as Clint Alexander Brown, 38, of Columbia.
McCullough said the weekend was a busy one for DNR as the department responded to 6 or 7 non-fatal boating incidents around the state. He wanted to stress to everyone the importance of wearing a life jacket at all times when on any type of boat -- especially in high traffic areas, entering or leaving a dock.
Lexington County Sheriff's Office assisted in this case.
