COMMERCE TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Two people were injured in two separate incidents on Commerce Township lakes on the Fourth of July.
Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said the two incidents happened within minutes of each other on North Commerce Lake and Union Lake. The search and rescue team responded to both incidents.
North Commerce Lake injury
Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said the search and rescue team, and Commerce Township Fire Department paramedics were called at 5:57 p.m. on July 4, 2024, to North Commerce Lake for reports of an unresponsive man floating in the water.
Officials said a 20-year-old Commerce Township man was on a pontoon boat near a sand bar in the lake when he dove off into around four feet of water and hit his head on the bottom of the lake.
Other people on the pontoon noticed he was unresponsive and got him out of the water. He was taken to an area hospital and is being treated for serious injuries.
Officials said he was not wearing a life jacket and that alcohol is believed to be a factor.
Union Lake crash
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said a personal watercraft struck a 24-foot pontoon boat.
The crash happened around 5:43 p.m. on July 4, 2024, on Union Lake. A 32-year-old Waterford Township man fell off a personal watercraft, which continued for an unknown distance before it struck the side of the pontoon boat.
A 29-year-old Waterford Township woman was lying on her back at the rear of the boat with her feet in the area where the personal watercraft struck the boat. She received minor injuries and refused treatment at the scene.
Alcohol does not appear to be a factor.