Two Children Injured in Jet Ski Accident on Lake Lanier

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources is reporting that two children were injured on Lake Lanier Friday afternoon when a Jet Ski rode over the inner tube they were riding on. The accident is reported to have taken place near Van Pugh Park at the end of Gaines Ferry Road at about 3 p.m.

"Right now we have that a 38-year-old male on a personal watercraft ran over two youth being pulled behind a pontoon on a tube. Youth are a 11-year-old male and a 15-year-old female," said Melissa Cumming, spokesperson with the DNR, Wildlife Resources division. Two DNR agents were nearby and were able to pull one of the children from the water and a nearby boater helped rescue the other child.

Cumming said the 11-year-old has critical injuries and was lifeflighted to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston. The 15-year-old was also injured, though not as severely. Hall County Fire Chief David Kimbrell reportedly told Channel 2 Action News, however, that the girl's condition began to deteriorate and she was also transferred to a helicopter.

Cumming said the driver of the PWC was a friend of the family and knew both victims.

"We are not sure yet on charges, but alcohol was not involved," Cumming said.

Despite increased boating safety measures, the AJC is reporting that Lanier remains overwhelmingly busy and Sgt. Mike Burgamy of the Georgia DNR says that although BUI is still prevalent, "lack of education about water safety is a chronic problem."

"People just don't know the rules of the road. They're amateurs who overestimate their skills behind the wheel of a boat," he said.

The accident comes on the heels of the funeral of, who were killed in a boating accident a little more than two weeks ago. 

Authorities have not released the names of the driver of the Jet Ski or the two victims in Friday's accident.