A paddleboat ride on a sunny, spring-like day in late autumn turned tragic for a Pontiac man and his companion Monday afternoon.
Around 4:30 p.m., Oakland County Sheriff deputies were dispatched to the Orion Cove apartment complex on Buckhorn Lake, where a man and female companion had taken a small paddleboat out onto the lake.
Deputies reported that the paddleboat began taking on water and capsized, forcing the couple to attempt to swim back to safety in water temperatures estimated at 40 degrees.
Members of the Lapeer County Dive Team rescued Judith Thomas, 46, who deputies said was able to swim back to a distance where she could stand up in the water.
Thomas, also of Pontiac, was pulled from the water and was responsive when transported to St. Joseph Hospital in Pontiac.
However, Anthony Green, 35, was found later in 12 to 15 feet of water, about 70 feet from the shore. He was reportedly unresponsive and not breathing after having been in the water for about 40 minutes.
Green was transported at about 5:10 p.m. to POH Hospital in Pontiac, where he was pronounced dead a little more than an hour later.
Based on information compiled by deputies at the scene, the pair had been visiting the apartment complex along with the victim’s father-in-law and another man, presumably to go fishing.
A resident of the apartment complex said the paddleboat used by the couple had been setting out in a wooded area adjacent to the lake for some time.
Deputies speculated that the pair borrowed the boat, possibly not aware of its condition. They added that there were no life preservers on the boat.
The paddleboat was recovered and impounded as part of an ongoing investigation of the incident, said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, who visited the scene of the accident scene later in the evening.
‘This is our first fatal boating accident of the year,? Bouchard pointed out. ‘Our dive team got here quickly, but the water was very dark. It was almost a search by feel.?
Sgt. Dan Toth said deputies are still trying to establish who owns the paddleboat and whether it was seaworthy. There are also questions as to whom, if anyone, the couple was visiting at the apartment complex.
Toth stressed that taking a boat out on a lake without life vests or other floatation devices is an ‘accident waiting to happen.?
‘The lack of floatation devices, along with the cold water conditions, likely contributed to the accident,? said Toth.