Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


It has been a difficult year on Oakland County lakes - with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team being called out for 11 drownings in 2024. The Office said all indications were that number was going to rise Thursday night.

A press release states a 911 emergency caller reported shortly before 8:30pm “that a pleasure boat was out of control, running in circles in the middle of Elizabeth Lake in Waterford Township”. The boat was unoccupied and there appeared to be shoes floating in the water.

Sheriff Michael Bouchard said “When my phone went off with the emergency message on a report of an unoccupied boat running in circles in middle of the lake at full throttle and clothing floating in the water, I thought this sure sounds like we’re going to have another tragic death. Our team activated and thankfully by sheer luck, that was not the outcome.”

The Team quickly deployed multiple rescue boats and a strike team from Lapeer – a member of the Southeast Michigan Dive Group – responded as did a Sheriff’s Office helicopter and drone unit. The belief was at least one person may have fallen overboard. Shortly after the initial report, the boat – with the throttle fully forward – ran out of gas.

Deputies recovered the 17-foot boat and discovered the safety lanyard was attached to the key which was still in the ignition. Life jackets were also found stowed away on the boat. While the search was underway, deputies used the boat registration and were able to locate the boat’s owner, a 35-year-old Waterford Township resident, and contact him at his home.

The boat owner told deputies that he and his passenger, a 24-year-old Wixom woman, were thrown from the boat when they hit a wake. Both were able to swim an unknown distance to shore. Neither wore a life jacket. The boat was towed to shore where it was turned over to the owner.

The Office said the initial investigation revealed that alcohol was involved but the primary factor was the owner’s inexperience operating a boat. The incident remains under investigation.

Bouchard said the evening could easily have turned deadly. He said “In this instance, we had multiple failures that by the grace of God did not end up with someone seriously hurt or killed. Not wearing personal flotation devices, consuming alcohol and not utilizing a safety lanyard with an auto shut off capability was a recipe for a tragedy. I implore people to use common sense and water safety sense. I am again, very proud of our team. They were able to safely recover the boat and determine where the occupants of the boat were in a relatively short period of time, thus bringing a large rescue effort safely to a close.”