Several People Rescued After Nashville Boat Dock Collapses

Several people had to be rescued on Old Hickory Lake Wednesday night (February 17) when a boat dock collapsed at Blue Turtle Bay Marina in Old Hickory. The cause of the collapse is believed to be because of a buildup of ice and snow on the dock's roof.

Crews from the Nashville Fire Department and Office of Emergency Management responded to reports of a water structure collapse around 8:30 p.m. that left 12 people trapped. When they arrived on the scene, they noticed that a dock, approximately 100 yards long, had fallen into the freezing water. Due to the icy conditions of the dock, crews couldn't respond on foot and instead had to take rescue boats to reach those who were trapped, News Channel 5 reports.

"This is a very dangerous process because it's dark outside, it's slippery," said NFD's Kendra Loney. "Without the ice and the snow it's already slippery and there are certain things that you have to do to make sure that you can safely get one person to the next boat."

With the assistance of the Hendersonville Fire Department, crews rescued each trapped boater and took them to shore to be assessed by medical crews. No injuries were reported. After taking everyone to safety, crews made a secondary search to make sure no additional boaters were left behind.

Two other docks collapsed this week at nearby Brandywine Marina due to the winter weather, but no one was trapped in either incident.

Photo/Video: Caroline Chaney