One drowned, one rescued at Holland State Park

HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — After a drowning and a water rescue at Holland State Park, Ottawa County Sheriff’s authorities issued an appeal for beach visitors to take red-flag warnings seriously.

A 52-year-old Grand Rapids man drowned at the park, despite rescuers’ efforts on Sunday, Aug. 22, 2021. He name is withheld, pending family notification, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Chris Dill. Rescuers, called to the scene at 3:40 p.m. on the report of a swimmer in distress near the park’s north pier, found themselves also pulling a second distressed swimmer from Lake Michigan.

Responders included Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office road patrol; E-Units; and Marine Division deputies, as well as AMR Ambulance, Park Township firefighters, and State of Michigan DNR officers.

DNR officers arrived first and saw the Grand Rapids man struggling to swim at about the halfway length of the pier. They were able to get him onto the pier, where life-saving efforts started, aided by incoming rescuers. The man died, according to police.

Dill noted that, even as the first rescue efforts were underway, they were able to pull a second distressed swimmer from Lake Michigan using a life ring. That swimmer, who remains unidentified by police, survived.

The Grand Rapids man’s drowning remains under investigation by the Sheriff’s detectives as well as the Ottawa County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The beach-hazards statement remains in effect until at least 8 p.m. today, as does a small craft warning. Both are intended to remind people to stay out of Lake Michigan and off the piers.