ATLANTA - Georgia game wardens made nine boating under the influence arrests during the Labor Day holiday weekend, but the state recorded no drownings or boating fatalities, according to final numbers released by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
PREVIOUS STORY: 8 BUI arrests reported in Georgia over Labor Day weekend
The final report covers activity from 12:01 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, through 11:59 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7. DNR reported nine BUI arrests, three boating incidents and one injury statewide.
Lake Lanier accounts for most BUI arrests
What we know:
Lake Lanier was the busiest of the major lakes included in DNR's final report, accounting for six BUI arrests and two boating incidents. Lake Allatoona had two BUI arrests, while the remaining BUI arrest was recorded elsewhere in the state.
Two of the weekend's incidents happened Sunday on Lake Lanier.
In Forsyth County, game wardens responded after a pontoon boat ran aground near Port Royal Marina and came to rest completely on a shoal.
DNR said no one was injured, but wardens suspected the boat's operator was impaired. After conducting a BUI screening, they determined the operator was intoxicated and arrested him on a BUI charge. The pontoon was severely damaged and had to be towed from the shoal.
The operator was taken to the Forsyth County Jail.
Second BUI arrest after Lake Lanier collision
A second incident happened shortly after 9:30 p.m. Sunday at the courtesy dock at LandShark Cove on Lake Lanier in Hall County.
According to DNR, witnesses and Margaritaville employees told game wardens that a boater attempted to move his vessel from a reserved spot and struck a nearby cabin cruiser. The operator then parked his boat in a slip at another dock.
Wardens collected witness statements and located the operator. He was arrested on charges of boating under the influence and obstruction of a law enforcement officer and taken to the Hall County Jail.
Woman injured after boat runs aground
The weekend's third boating incident — and its only reported injury — occurred on Clarks Hill Lake.
Game wardens in Lincoln County were called Monday about an unattended boat that had run aground in Soap Creek.
Wardens tracked down the operator, who told them he had been towing people on tubes the previous evening when he failed to see a mud flat just below the waterline because of low water conditions.
The boat struck the mud flat and ran aground. DNR said the impact threw one passenger into the bottom of the boat, causing a cut to her left knee. She was treated and released from Piedmont McDuffie.
The operator told wardens he had already contacted Sea Tow to remove the vessel.
DNR's final lake-by-lake report shows Clarks Hill Lake recorded one boating incident and one injury during the holiday weekend.
Final 2026 Labor Day boating numbers
The statewide totals for Sept. 5-7 were:
- Drownings: 0
- BUI arrests: 9
- Boating incidents: 3
- Injuries: 1
- Boating fatalities: 0
The Gainesville enforcement region, which includes Lake Lanier, recorded six BUI arrests and two boating incidents. The Acworth region recorded two BUI arrests, while the Thomson region recorded one boating incident and the weekend's only injury.