MONROE COUNTY — Photos and a video of a large floating party on Lake Monroe are raising COVID-19 concerns.
The photos shared with WRTV show young people crowded on three double-decker rental boats Friday.
Indiana University is investigating since the young people on the rental boats may be IU students, according to university spokesperson Chuck Carney. If they are university students, there will be possible sanctions for violation of the school's directives on unsafe large gatherings off-campus.
Those sanctions include suspension or expulsion. Indiana Conservation Officers are also working with the IU Police Department.
The Lake Monroe Boat Rental Company released this statement:
"On Friday, we had a group of student-aged renters that violated our COVID-19 policies and attracted the attention of our community.
Before the boats went out, we addressed the drivers and renters, letting them know they were not allowed to meet with or tie up to other boats in the water.
One of our staff went and checked on the groups midway through the day and reported back that a group of double-deckers were tied up to each other.
We acted immediately within the scope of our abilities and the individuals that were tied up forfeited their deposits and had their remaining 2020 reservations canceled and refunded."
