College student killed in boat crash on Lake Murray, officials say
A college student who was in South Carolina for a fishing tournament died after a boat crash on Lake Murray, officials said.
Johnathan Brian, a 21-year-old from Shelbyville, Kentucky, died Tuesday morning, Newberry County Coroner Laura Kneece said.
Brian was a student at Western Kentucky University, where he was a member of the fishing team, according to Kentucky Bass Nation High School and Junior.
At about 1 p.m. on Jan. 25, Brian was one of the occupants involved in a boating collision in the Prosperity area of Lake Murray, Kneece said. He was taken to Prisma Health Richland where he died, according to the coroner.
Information about Brian’s cause of death was not available, but it continues to be investigated by the coroner’s office and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.
On Wednesday, South Carolina DNR spokesman Stephen Fastenau told The State that the boats were from out of state, and were on Lake Murray for a college fishing tournament.
Western Kentucky University officials said that Brian, a junior, and his college teammates were going to compete in the Bassmaster College Series fishing tournament, the College Heights Herald reported. On the day before the tournament began, Brian was on a boat that was going through a practice run on the lake when the collision with another team’s vessel happened, according to the College Heights Herald.
Each boat had two occupants, Fastenau said.
Three people, including Brian, were taken to the Richland County hospital, according to Fastenau. Bassmaster officials said the surviving crash victims have been released from the hospital, according to the College Heights Herald.
Despite the crash, the tournament with about 500 participants was held as scheduled last weekend, and was won by a team from the University of Montevallo, Bassmaster officials said.
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This story was originally published January 31, 2024 at 10:21 AM with the headline "College student killed in boat crash on Lake Murray, officials say."
