Second Boy Dies in Tenn. Lake Electrocution Incident

(KNOXVILLE, Tenn.) -- A second child has died following an electrocution incident at a Tennessee lake over the Fourth of July holiday.

On Wednesday afternoon, at Cherokee Lake outside Knoxville, 10-year-old Noah Winstead was electrocuted in the lake's waters, while his swimming companion 11-year-old Nathan Lyman was taken to an area hospital for injuries sustained in the incident. On Thursday night, however, Lyman was pronounced dead at the East Tennessee Children's Hospital, after he was taken off life support, the Knoxville Sentinel Times reports.

Witnesses said the boys had been swimming from one house boat to another when they suddenly cried out for help.

"We believe that somehow or another, the electricity at this point got into the metal of the boat, and when the children touched the metal ladder to get in, that's when the electrocution occurred," Grangier County Sheriff Scott Layel said.

Police say seven other people were also injured by the electricity in Cherokee Lake -- four adults and three children -- and were taken to area hospitals for medical attention.

Authorities say they are still unsure what energized the lake.

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