A summery day at Georgia’s Lake Lanier ended in tragedy on Thursday when Thomas Shepard Milner was electrocuted after jumping off of his family’s dock into the lake below.


Though the 24-year-old was quickly pulled from the water — his rescuer noting he felt a burning sensation consistent with electric shock upon entering the lake — and underwent CPR until EMTs arrived, bringing him to Northside Forsyth Hospital, he ultimately died of his injuries the following day.



Though local boater Chris Morris may have dubbed the incident “a freak accident” while speaking with Northern Georgia’s WMTV-NBC15, Milner is far from the only person who has passed away after an ill-fated dip in Lake Lanier.


Dubbed “one of America’s most haunted lakes,” electrocution is only one of many ways one can die in the terrifying body of water, as TikToker @jc.dombrowski explained in their now-viral clip on the lake.


@jc.dombrowski Stay away from #lakelanier #georgia #scary #fyp #edutok #education #horror #summer #storytime #foryou #georgiacheck ♬ original sound - J.C. Dombrowski


@voiceofri #haunted #lakelanier #georgia #history #fyp #foryou ♬ Spooky, quiet, scary atmosphere piano songs - Skittlegirl Sound


Beyond its general aura of hauntedness, a vibe that likely stems from the lake’s location over several flooded cemeteries and a bygone town — “for some reason, we thought it would be a great idea to flood a bunch of graveyards and assume nothing bad would happen,” he said — the lake’s terrifying critters only fuel to this fire.


“As of 2017, reports of countless ravenous leeches has been going up,” @jc.dombrowski continued, noting that alligators, too, may also nip at those who dare to swim in Lake Lanier.


“I don’t know how alligators got into Lake Lanier but they’re definitely in there,” he added.


@ga_news Usher's Ex-Wife wants Lake Lanier Drained #atlantafirstnews #lakelanier #lakelanierhaunted #atlanta #atlantanews #atl #ga #georgia #news #ganews #fultoncountyga #usher #usherwife ♬ original sound - Georgia News


So take it from @jc.dombrowski — if you gotta cool down in Northern Georgia this summer, maybe it’s best to stick to the pool.