Non-Witness Narrative by (do not publish name) on 2011-06-21 (okay to publish): Commercial Raft with 5 guests and one guide. Guests ejected after hitting big rock on river right just below Mikey's. One 16 year old never surfaced after suffering a foot entrapment. Dislodged with paddle. Attempts to revive were unsuccessful. TEXT ATTACHMENTS The second rafting fatality on the Ocoee River this season was a Florida teenager, and an agency spokeswoman said he was wearing a life jacket and helmet but his leg got trapped under a rock in the water. Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation spokeswoman Tisha Calabrese-Benton said the Broward County, Fla., youth was dumped from the raft along with the guide and others who either got ashore or were rescued upstream from the Whitewater Center in East Tennessee. Calabrese-Benton said the 16-year-old victim's name may not be released due to his age. She said the deaths -- on Sunday and June 6 -- are the first Ocoee rafting fatalities since 2005. Calabrese-Benton said the Ocoee has had a "good safety record" when you consider the thousands of people who visit the river. Ashville Citizen Times AP story
