Tragedy strikes family, wife is killed 24 hours after husband's life saved in separate incident
OAKLAND TWP, MICH (Fox 2) - For one Livonia family, the escape from tragedy was short-lived, as a 66-year-old woman was killed in a traffic crash just 24 hours after her husband was saved from a lake after falling through the ice.
Investigators believe the wife was traveling to pick up her husband’s vehicle when the crash occurred Friday at 1:53 p.m. on Rochester Road and Beach Drive in Oakland Township. The crash was 24 hours and eight minutes after her husband fell through the ice at an Oakland County lake.
In Friday’s crash, a 19-year-old Oakland Township man was operating a 2011 Ford Edge south on Rochester Road when his vehicle crossed the center line for an unknown reason and hit a northbound 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee head-on. The operator of the Jeep, a Clarkston man, and his wife, both aged 62, were taken to the hospital by the Oakland Township Fire Department paramedics after the crash. The man is listed in stable condition; the wife is listed in critical condition. The deceased woman was a back-seat passenger.
Police haven't released either person's name yet.
The husband who fell through the ice remains in critical condition in an area hospital. Their grandson, who was with him when he fell, is unharmed.
The pair had ventured out onto Lake George in Addison Township on Thursday afternoon and began drilling into the ice when it gave way. The 66-year-old man fell through first and his 15-year-old grandson called 911.
After dialing the police, he tried getting his grandfather out but also fell in.
Fortunately, a neighbor watching the incident grabbed his kayak and paddled out to help.
He managed to assist getting the teenager out of the water before going back to shore to get a second kayak to assist the grandfather. The good Samaritan couldn't immediately rescue the man because the ice kept breaking, but was able to keep his head above water until help arrived.
From there, local firefighters managed to use a line to pull the grandfather out of the water and onto safer ice before performing CPR.
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Near-tragic ice fishing trip in Oakland County averted by quick-thinking neighbor
The 66-year-old fell into the ice after he started drilling on Lake George in Addison Township on Thursday. After calling 911, his grandson also fell in while trying to rescue his grandfather.