Loudon Co. Sheriff’s Office investigating drowning of 14-year-old boy at Tellico Lake

Loudon Co. Sheriff's Office detectives are investigating the drowning of a 14-year-old boy at Tellico Lake Monday evening.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) -Loudon County Sheriff’s Office detectives are investigating the drowning of a 14-year-old boy at Tellico Lake Monday evening.

According to a release, Loudon Co. 911 received a call around 7:19 p.m. of a teenage male who had jumped from a bridge on State Route 444 into Tellico Lake and did not resurface. Officials found the teen’s body about an hour later.

“At approximately 8:36 p.m., I was notified by EMA Divers that the body of a young teenage male, who we identified at 14-year-old Travis Knox was located in an area below the bridge where he was last seen by witnesses,” said LCSO Chief Deputy Jimmy Davis. “It is our understanding that this young man is a resident of Monroe County and is a student at Sequoyah High School.”

LCSO Deputies, TWRA, Loudon County Fire and Rescue, Tellico Village Fire, Priority EMS and Loudon County EMA Rescue Divers all responded to the scene.

“Our entire team of first responders, the men and women who responded and worked hard to find this young man, are devastated at the outcome of this tragedy. Tonight we hurt for the young man who lost his life and we hurt for the family who is broken at the loss of their son. This is a call no first responder wants to have to respond to,” said Davis.

The investigation is ongoing.