A private tubing company is to blame in large part for the death of 9-year-old Peachtree City girl who drowned in the Chattahoochee River June 3, according to an investigation conducted by the National Park Service.
When Anna Van Horn and her party signed up to rent tubes from Allsouth Tubing, they weren’t made aware of a pending water release from the nearby Buford Dam that was scheduled for about 40 minutes later. The release subsequently caused turbulent waters and ultimately led to Van Horn’s drowning, the report concluded.
Allsouth Tubing also failed to inform the group of the emergency warning horn procedure as required by federal regulations, according to the investigation.
The investigation determined that:
• Van Horn was in a group of about 10 people who were bused to a portion of the river near Ga. Highway 20 where they entered the river.
• A short while later, as the current strengthened, Van Horn became entangled in a tree that was partially submerged in the river, and others in her group shouted for her to get back in the tube; and
• Van Horn then became separated from the tree and was swept downstream where she became entangled in a second tree and was overtaken by the increasing flow of water in the area where she was believed to have ultimately drowned.
Van Horn was recovered from the water by Forsyth and Gwinnett County rescue teams, but she was pronounced dead at Northside-Forsyth Hospital.
Van Horn was still wearing a personal floatation device when she was found underwater, according to the investigation.
