NORRIS LAKE, Tenn. (WVLT) -- A 12-year-old Illinois boy was injured Friday afternoon while riding on a pontoon boat on Norris Lake in Campbell County, according to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

The TWRA says the youth "was riding on the front of a pontoon boat with his feet hanging in the water, when he slipped off the front of the boat."

The boy suffered serious leg injuries and was flown to UT Medical Center by Lifestar after being transported to the bank on a personal watercraft, according to the TWRA.

The TWRA says the boat was operated by Steve Kaganovich, 56, of Illinois.

Kaganovich is charged with reckless and negligent operation of a boat, because "passengers are not allowed to sit outside the railing or hang their feet into the water when a pontoon boat is underway," according to the TWRA.