Tuesday, September 2, 2025–11:10 a.m.

-Staff reports-

As the community continues to mourn the loss of two Rome residents in a tragic ATV accident in Cherokee County, Alabama, over the Labor Day weekend, authorities continue to investigate how it happened and what can be done to keep it from happening again.

A side-by-side RZR carrying nine occupants collided with another RZR, then overturned and struck a tree.

The driver, identified as 34-year-old Marcus Dwayne Ragland, was ejected and pronounced dead at the scene.

31-year-old Ashley Brooke Hawkins later succumbed to her injuries at the hospital.

Seven children, ages 1 to 12 years old, were also injured.

State Senator Andrew Jones, who represents Cherokee County, Alabama, unsuccessfully proposed legislation to impose additional regulations on ATV parks like Indian Mountain.

He questioned why nine people were permitted to ride on a single side-by-side.

“When two adults and seven children, after paying admission and signing liability waivers, climbed aboard a single ATV designed to haul half that amount of people, it would stand to reason that a park staff member should have intervened,” he said.

Jones called comparisons between Indian Mountain and other recreational attractions like Weiss Lake “false.”

“Weiss Lake is not private property, but Indian Mountain is private property, traversed by the public,” he said. “People don’t pay admission to go to Weiss Lake, but they do pay admission to go to Indian Mountain ATV Park. Law enforcement is present and rules are enforced on Weiss Lake. However, there is no law enforcement presence at Indian Mountain, thus it falls to the park to enforce its own rules.”

Meanwhile, Cherokee County Emergency Management Agency Director Shawn Rogers said there is a certain amount of personal accountability that comes with riding ATVs.

“Those rules that were there, it’s almost impossible for somebody to look and monitor the actions of park goers every minute of the day,” he added. “This is a 4,600, 4,700, 4,800-acre park. It’s very large.”

Rogers stressed the importance of operating RZRs and other recreational vehicles safely and responsibly.

“We wish and we hope that everyone would follow the manufacturer’s recommendation or the rules at the park,” he said. “Unfortunately, in almost every accident that happens, whether it’s at the ATV park, at Cherokee Rock Village, or at Little River Canyon, somebody has a lapse in judgment or they do something unsafe that leads to someone being injured or killed.”

The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Cherokee County Coroner’s Office, is conducting a thorough investigation.