Teenager Drowns At Tims Ford Lake

A Franklin County teenager drowned in Tims Ford Lake Sunday afternoon while on an outing with some friends.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Department identified him as Jesse Barnes, 14, Powell Street of Decherd.
According to Franklin County Sheriff’s department spokesperson Sgt. Chris Guess, the teenager died after swinging on a rope over the lake and dropped into the water. “Once he was in the water his friends said that he began to struggle,” Guess stated.
The friends then swam out to him and attempted to rescue him but they were unable to save him.
The teenagers were swimming in the Kitchen Hollow area in the Harmony community of Franklin County. Guess noted that the area is off of Highway 50 west of Winchester.
After he went under the water the Franklin County Rescue Squad was summoned and they retrieved his body from the waters of Tims Ford Lake. “He went under the water around 3:30 p.m. and the rescue squad recovered the body around 5 p.m.
Barnes was a sophomore at Franklin County High School.
An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death.
This is the second drowning death on Tims Ford Lake in a week.
Grundy County resident Craig Caldwell of Palmer drowned Labor Day weekend while tubing on the lake.