4th person drowns in Little River on Lookout Mountain

FORT PAYNE, Alabama (WDEF) – There have already been four fatal drowning incidents at the Little River Canyon this summer.

The most recent one was an 18 year old who was floating on the river above Little River falls with his friends.

According to the National Park Service, His friends got off the river before the waterfall but, the victim got caught up in the current, went over the waterfall and never resurfaced.

The Canyon usually averages around two drowning’s per year.

So far, most of them have been from people misjudging the current.

Park Ranger Matt Switzer tells us “Normally this time of the year, it’s flowing around 50 to 56 cubic feet per second so, its higher. But, once the river starts getting lower like it is now, people start to get a little more comfortable around it and that comfortability can make it easy to underestimate the power of that water.”

The Little River Canyon’s visitation has increased by 20 percent.