Memorial Day weekend proved to be an especially tragic one this year with two Leesville residents drowning and four boating accidents, authorities reported.


Holly Michelle Beall, 15, of Leesville, died Saturday after her personal watercraft collided with another at Toledo Bend. Luther Beason Jr., 54, also of Leesville, died Sunday, after his boat capsized on Anacoco Lake.

Beason's body wasn't found until around 9:30 a.m. Monday as rescuers were unable to locate it before dark after the 4:30 p.m. Sunday incident, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Lt. Bill Tyree said.

Beason was driving a 14-foot aluminum johnboat pulling a man on a tube when the boat capsized while he was attempting to turn, Tyree said. The passenger, another man, and Beason were both ejected. The passenger was able to swim safely to shore but Beason, who apparently sustained a head injury, wasn't wearing a life jacket and couldn't be immediately found.

Rescuers searched until dark Sunday and then returned at daybreak Monday morning when his body was recovered, Tyree said.

The person being pulled by Beason's boat sustained a broken arm, but the passenger had no injuries.

On Saturday, Beall died after her personal watercraft collided with that of a 14-year-old girl's between 3 and 4 p.m. while the two friends were riding in the middle of the reservoir near Pleasure Point, Tyree said. Both girls were travelling at a high rate of speed and collided head-on, ejecting both. Beall was hit by the other jet ski after she was thrown into the water. She was wearing an approved personal flotation device.


The other girl was able to safely swim to shore and was uninjured. There will be no charges filed in connection to the wreck or the girl's death, Tyree said.

"It was definitely a busy weekend," he said, noting both the number of boaters on area waterways and the number of incidents. "We were kind of surprised we didn't see a cut back on fuel and spending -- there were plenty of folks out."