OAKLAND COUNTY (WWJ) A man drowned in a northern Oakland County lake this Fourth of July weekend, authorities said.
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said the man went about 40 feet away from shore in White Lake, and never resurfaced, on Saturday, July 5 around 7 p.m. The 9-1-1 call reported he was on a boat when he entered the lake at Jackson near Eagle.
The Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team and the members of the Southeast Michigan Dive Group searched for the man. According to authorities, a member of the Oakland County Marine Division recovered him from the water about four hours after he vanished (around 11 p.m.)
His body was found 100 feet away from shore-- submerged in approximately seven feet of water and surrounded by "heavy vegetation," sheriff's officials said.
He was identified as Jason Dwane Brookshire, 49, of White Lake Township.
His cause of death was listed as “drowning.”
Sheriff's officials said he was not wearing a life jacket. It's unclear how he entered the water. They said alcohol is believed to be a factor, but the drowning remains under investigation. An autopsy is scheduled for a later date.
White Lake is located in White Lake Township and Highland Township.
Dive Group Strike Teams from Wayne, Lapeer, Genesee and Saginaw counties, and Shelby Township, assisted with the search.
This comes within 12 hours of an 86-year-old man with dementia drowning in a pond in Springfield Township.
“This has been an extremely busy and tragic weekend for our search and rescue team and our partners,” Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said. “Sadly, all the information we had put out in advance of this weekend about how to be safe could have prevented (this tragedy.)”