KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It's Labor Day weekend and many boaters love to hang out on the water. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency said it is increasing patrols during the holidays.
TWRA said there are more registered boats than ever, around 270,000 registered boats, and most likely several more that aren't registered boats are still in production.
Labor Day is the last big boating weekend of the season, and one of the things Chris Catlett and his family like to do is to have fun at Norris Lake.
"I'm sure there'll be a lot of boaters out there," Catlett said. "You know when I pray... I hope that no one gets injured out there and no one dies due to someone else's negligence."
Chris Catlett lost his son, Conner, from a boating incident this summer. He was 12 years old at the time.
About a month after the incident, the family honored his birthday by heading out to Norris Lake. And now, Catlett advocates for boating safety.
"A gentleman on a fishing boat was going very fast down the lake," Catlett said. "It's coming at a straight line towards them, and he simply did not stop did not maneuver out of his current line and ran right over through the back of their boat and hit me and my son."
Carrie Combest is a family friend. She and her children knew Conner and said there were some concerns at Norris Lake.
She and her boyfriend own a boat and they're often out on the water.
"People not keeping their distance is one thing, you know, when you see another boat coming your way, you know, give them room," Combest said. "New boaters... a lot of times they just don't have the experience and they don't know the rules of the lake. And they need to ask, don't be embarrassed. Ask, if you don't know what the rules are, because you could save a life."
When people see TWRA is there, they naturally slow down and behave themselves, TWRA said. But at the same time, there are a lot of boats out there and a huge body of water.
Matt Cameron, spokesperson for TWRA, said they can't be watching every situation at all times. It really comes down to the personal responsibility of every boater.
Cameron said it's important to behave out on the waters to abide by the rules, to designate sober operators, to slow down, to be aware of their surroundings and not operate in a reckless or negligent manner.
"If we could get everyone wearing life jackets and having sober operators, we will probably cut our fatalities and serious injuries in half easily," Cameron said. " I feel like a broken record, sometimes beat a dead horse. I just don't want to see more people die on the water. And I know that our officers are doing the best they can on each body of water every weekend, ensure that we don't have these accidents. And the sad part is we can't be there to prevent every single one of them. I think that's why we need the public to wake up and say it's in our hands, you know, boating safety."
Cameron said, things happen that people cannot control, but the things that are under their control have to be there.
Catlett, who now has to live with a pain that penetrates the soul, the loss of his son can only hope for better.
"So, just increased responsibility from boaters out on the water and increased TWRA presence to deter reckless behavior to deter BUIs or boating under the influence. As boaters all of us can do better," Catlett said. "While I know that an increase in presence by TWRA is not going to deter all irresponsible behavior, I understand that, but it can't hurt to increase it. And who knows, maybe it saves another child's life."
For now, Catlett's family is waiting for the investigation to wrap up and receive the rest of the facts. Once that happens, they'll know what their next steps will be.
Regardless of what comes back, Catlett said he will continue to advocate for boating safety as his son's life serves as a wake-up call.
"There's no child [that] should ever lose their life out there on the water sitting on a boat to being doing things that they love," Catlett said.