Tennessee River drowning: Father, son die in 'horrible accident,' Perry County sheriff says
A young boy and his father are dead after what authorities believe was a fishing accident on the Tennessee River in Perry County.
The Perry County Sheriff's Office and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation were called to the area of Cypress Creek Road in Linden before 7 a.m. Wednesday after an employee of a sand and gravel company found the child in the river.
Authorities Thursday morning identified the victims as 4-year-old Michael Allen Tucker and 31-year-old Michael Ryan Tucker.
Deputies found an unattended vehicle near where the child was found, they said in a news conference Wednesday.
Sheriff Nick Weems said clues around the area indicated father and son were fishing. Using sonar, crews were able to find the father's body, which was then recovered by rescue divers.
"Today is a sad day in Perry County," Weems said. "We don't believe at this time any foul play is there. We believe this was an accident. A horrible accident."
Perry County sheriff: 'One of many' deaths, drownings at fishing spot
Weems said the area where the two were found is an unsafe area for people to visit.
"It's a place that is known for people to go to frequent and fish off of the barges," he explained. "It's a gravel pit, so they dredge gravel from the river and they'll stack those barges alongside to be loaded to carry gravel from one location to another."
Despite several "no tresspassing" signs, it's a common place for people to fish.
"This is one of many deaths or drownings that we've seen in this area over the years," Weems said, adding that investigators believed the two victims in this case had been in the water for 12 to 16 hours.
Where is Perry County?
Perry County is on the outskirts of Middle Tennessee. It sits just off Interstate 40 about an hour and a half west of Nashville.
Linden, where the boy and man were pulled from the river, is the county seat.
The Tennessee River is the western boundary of Perry County.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee river drowning: Father, son found dead in Perry County
