WATERFORD TWP. (WWJ) A Waterford Township man, his teen son and his friend, were seriously injured when their boat exploded before taking it out on Pontiac Lake.
Oakland County Sheriff’s officials said the father, 45, and the boys, both 16, were on a 17-foot Craft-Chris boat at the public boat launch near M-59 and Williams Lake Road on Sunday, July 27.
Authorities said the explosion happened around 1:20 p.m. after the ignition switch was turned on.
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team, along with the Waterford Township Fire Department, were called to the scene. The fire had burned itself out by the time first responders arrived, according to sheriffs’ officials.
All three were hospitalized. The father and son have “severe burns,” but are both in stable condition.
Sheriff’s officials said the other boy was transported to the hospital with “burns over 50 percent of his body.” He is in critical condition.
The cause of the explosion remains under investigation.