10:26 AM Jul 22, 2011
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a 60-year-old Indianapolis man from North Fox Island in northern Lake Michigan after he was stranded there since Monday. The man, whose name wasn't released, was hoisted aboard the helicopter Thursday night and taken to Traverse City, where he was to be evaluated for possible dehydration.
12:10 PM Jul 21, 2011
Thirty-eight-year-old Walter Wojahn left his grandfather's house in the Grant area about 11 a.m. Saturday to drive to his job at Sintel Inc. in Spring Lake Township. Family members in the area said they have not heard from him since. "He didn't show up for work Saturday,' said his step-brother, Harry Wojahn of Nunica. "He didn't call his daughter. He didn't call his grandfather, or his mother who he helps care for.'
11:16 AM Jul 21, 2011
Authorities said a Muskegon County man who bought the contents of a storage unit found that his purchase included a live hand grenade. The man found the grenade inside a handgun case and promptly took it Wednesday afternoon to the Egelston Township Fire Department. A bomb squad was called to dispose of the grenade. No injuries were reported. Deputy Fire Chief Dan Willea said the man had the grenade in his car, and showed it to firefighters after telling them he had something they were going to want to see.
11:08 AM Jul 21, 2011
A Hudsonville man was injured in a two-vehicle accident Wednesday morning on Adams Street, west of 60th Avenue, according to Sgt. Steve Austin of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. Kevin Lakowski, 33, was in critical condition with severe lower extremity injuries following the 7 a.m. accident, Austin said. He was airlifted by West Michigan Aircare to Spectrum Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids. Lakowski was in serious condition today, a hospital spokesperson said.
10:21 AM Jul 21, 2011
Two teenagers are OK after after getting caught up in the currents of Lake Michigan at Grand Haven State Park. Rescuers were called to the park shortly after 8:30 p.m. Wednesday on reports that two teens - ages 14 and 15 - were in distress. Grand Haven Department of Public Safety Sgt. Randy Poel said the teens were swimming in the waves and got caught in the current, which began carrying them unknowingly toward the pier. He said two off-duty lifeguards were able to swim to the two teens and determined that they were OK.
9:46 AM Jul 21, 2011
A woman arrested on her wedding day and jailed while wearing a white gown and veil has been arraigned on identity theft charges. The Jackson Citizen Patriot reported Wednesday that 53-year-old Tammy Lee Hinton is accused of using or trying to use her son's identification to get phone and utility service, and a credit card. Jackson District Court Magistrate Frederick Bishop ordered Hinton held on a $100,000 bond.
7:12 AM Jul 21, 2011
Firefighters from seven departments battled a series of small fires inside a Fruitport-area foundry Tuesday night after hydraulic fluid apparently leaked and started a fire in the center of the plant, according to Spring Lake Township Fire Chief Rick Nuvill. No injuries were reported. Second-shift employees evacuated the Casting Technologies Co. building at 14638 Apple Ave., just east of Fruitport, when the fire started just before 9:30 p.m. One of the employees said it was hard to tell how big the fire was because there was so much smoke.
2:01 PM Jul 20, 2011
A small Ottawa County airport is facing a problem with trespassers doing everything from making a video to post on YouTube to riding off-road vehicles on the runway. Park Township Airport Manager Brian Fredrick told The Holland Sentinel that bike riders and dog walkers are among those found on the airport grounds. It doesn't have a fence around it, and Fredrick said trespassers are found daily in warmer months. Fredrick said he warns trespassers that they could face a fine or jail time.
10:24 AM Jul 20, 2011
UPDATE: A 70-year-old Grand Haven man drove his car off Sheldon Road, ran over some trees and a street sign, and damaged a power pole before smashing into a tree shortly after noon Tuesday. David Treloar only suffered minor injuries in the crash, police said. He was taken by ambulance to North Ottawa Community Hospital, just two blocks away. A hospital spokeswoman said he was treated and released on Tuesday. Treloar lives on the 500 block of Orchard Avenue, near the accident scene.
10:04 AM Jul 20, 2011
A 31-year-old Birch Run woman died Tuesday following an all-terrain vehicle accident at Silver Lake State Park in Oceana County. Jenni Dotson died at a hospital after falling off the ATV she was driving Monday night on sand dunes at the park near Mears. Immediately after the crash, authorities said she only reported a sore chest and a cut chin. The crash was under investigation, police said.
10:03 AM Jul 20, 2011
A 49-year-old Battle Creek-area woman was electrocuted Tuesday night after stepping on a downed power line while trying to warn her neighbors. The Battle Creek Enquirer reported the woman was pronounced dead at the scene in Calhoun County's Emmett Township. Police said the power line broke and landed on a van, and the woman may have feared the van was on fire. Her name wasn't immediately released. Consumers Energy crews had to shut down the line before officers could approach it.
2:00 PM Jul 19, 2011
A bride arrested in her wedding dress on a felony warrant after exchanging vows at a Jackson-area church has missed a court date. The Jackson Citizen Patriot reported 53-year-old Tammy Lee Hinton was scheduled to appear Monday in Jackson County District Court. Blackman-Leoni Township Public Safety Deputy Director Jon Johnston said his department planned to work to locate her if another arrest warrant is issued. Police believed the woman had moved to Florida, and they got two tips that she would be back in town for Saturday's wedding.
11:45 AM Jul 19, 2011
A 14-month-old boy suffered what police believed to be minor injuries after falling through a window onto a cement driveway late Monday morning, said Lt. Mark Bennett of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. The child was on a piece of furniture at a Jeffery Street home in the Crockery Mobile Home Park, 13251 State Road, Bennett said, when he pushed through the screen of the window about 11:30 a.m.
11:24 AM Jul 19, 2011
A Coopersville man who escaped from an Ottawa County deputy's car and evaded police for three days earlier this summer pleaded guilty to all of the related charges on Monday in Ottawa County Circuit Court. Jordan Michael Mulder, 20, agreed to plead guilty in exchange for the Ottawa County prosecutor's office not file additional charges, according to court files. Sentencing was set for Aug. 19 at 9:30 a.m. Mulder remains in jail with bond set at $10,000 on each of the five charges.
11:22 AM Jul 19, 2011
Police in Grand Rapids said a 2-year-old boy has died after being struck by a pickup truck and the driver was stabbed following the accident. Grand Rapids police said in a statement that Javonni Conley was hospitalized after being struck Monday night, and later died. Preliminary information indicates that the child ran into the roadway and the 34-year-old driver wasn't able to avoid him.
9:53 AM Jul 19, 2011
A 16-year-old Kentwood girl was killed in a two-car accident late Monday afternoon near Coopersville, said Sgt. Steve Austin of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. Gabriella Valente, the only occupant of her vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene, Austin said. Valente was driving east on Garfield Street at about 5:39 p.m. when she failed to stop for a stop sign at the intersection of 48th Avenue, Austin said. The teen's 1997 Saturn was struck in the driver's door by a 1998 Ford van driven by Jason Silvas, 31, of Coopersville.
9:46 AM Jul 19, 2011
Ottawa County deputies said a 17-year-old girl was killed late Monday afternoon in a two-vehicle crash southeast of Coopersville. Investigators said the girl was driving east on Garfield Street when she ran the stop sign at 48th Avenue at around 5:30 p.m. A van going south on 48th Avenue ran into the driver's side of the girl's car. The Aero Med ambulance helicopter was put on standby to respond to the crash, but the girl was pronounced dead at the scene.