MILFORD (WWJ) – An Oakland County man has his prosthetic leg back, thanks to the help of the Oakland County Sheriff Dive Team.
As any father-son tandem may do on a lazy Sunday afternoon, Brandon Smith and his 6-year-old son Stone went out for a float on Sunrise Lake in Milford Township, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.
But when Stone jumped off their raft, the father’s $80,000 prosthetic leg someone became separated and fell into the lake, plunging nearly 50 feet to the bottom.
“He tried but he just couldn’t get it,” said Brandon’s father-in-law, Tim McIntosh.
Smith had his prosthetic leg for about a month before it fell in the lake. He got the prosthetic leg after 17 surgeries in the wake of an injury six years ago when he fell from a tree while hunting, according to the sheriff’s office.
Smith’s in-laws contacted the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office and asked for help. Cue the Sheriff’s Dive Team.
Sgt. Brian Burwell, who heads up the team, met with the family on Monday and used GPS coordinates the family provided as to the approximate location of the prosthesis. The team spent about 40 minutes before identifying a location.
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On Wednesday, it took Deputy Justin Wiegan less than 10 minutes to dive to the bottom of Sunrise Lake and retrieve the prosthesis – which was “in surprisingly good shape” – at a depth of 48 feet.
“You guys came to the rescue,” McIntosh said. “They were so professional. They were so good. It was a wonderful experience.”
Smith took the prosthesis with him to the hospital to have it checked out and to see if similar mishaps can be avoided in the future, officials said.
“Our dive team does an amazing job in a variety of conditions and circumstances,” Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said. “In this incident, they were able to make a big quality of life difference for this gentleman who obviously would be greatly negatively impacted by the loss of his prosthetic leg. I’m proud of their work every day and especially in this circumstance.”
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