Tameka Foster is urging people to sign her petition to clean the deadliest lake in Georgia after three more lives were lost in a single weekend.
Foster launched the Change.org appeal on May 30 to “drain, clean, restore, and improve safety measures” at Lake Lanier. Through the appeal, Foster seeks to reach a goal of 7,500 signatures. At the time of this report, more than 5,300 people had shown their support of her efforts, with the possibility of that number increasing.
Over the weekend of July 28 to 30, two more people drowned, and a third was electrocuted after diving into the manmade body of water. Each of the deaths was the result of separate, unrelated incidents. To date, more than 700 tragedies resulting in the loss of life or limbs have occurred at the popular recreational site.
In a since-deleted post to her Instagram Story, Foster wrote, “They said I was crazy,” after learning of the latest accidents. In another slide, she shared a post about the 24-year-old man who was fatally electrocuted.
“Another tragic event at Lake Lanier underscores the urgent need for change. For some time now, I’ve been fighting to bring attention to the issues surrounding this lake … Let’s raise awareness and work together to ensure such tragedies don’t happen again,” wrote the former wife of R&B sensation Usher.
Foster is the mother of five sons, two of whom she shares with Usher. She tragically lost her middle child, Kile Glover, in 2012. He was in an inner tube on the lake with family in June 2012 when he was struck by a jet ski that was operated by family friend Simon Hubbard. He spent two weeks on life support before he succumbed to his injuries at the age of 11.
Lake Lanier has been dubbed evil and haunted as its death toll continues to climb year after year. Urban legends suggest that the lake was hexed after residents of the thriving Black town of Oscarville were forced out by a racist mob in the 1950s to make way for the lake’s creation.
Remnants of the ghost town’s buildings and graveyards remain on the grounds of the lake, along with other debris and trees. Despite facing pushback from residents and business owners around the lake, Foster is remaining steadfast in the hopes of cleaning up the area.
“We owe it to the descendants of Oscarville and whatever other town that may be under there to clean the lake. I kind of look at it like a purification; they need to sage the lake,” she said in a recent interview.
In honor of her late son, Foster also launched the nonprofit Kile’s World, and is working on a cartoon series.
