10:44 AM Aug 30, 2011
Police said a 44-year-old Illinois man drowned while swimming in Lake Michigan, where strong offshore currents were making conditions dangerous. The Berrien County Sheriff's Department said the accident happened Sunday afternoon off Hagar Township Beach. Deputy Roy Davis told The Herald-Palladium of St. Joseph that the victim is from the Chicago suburb of Wheeling. Davis didn't release his name. Davis said the man was 75-100 feet from shore while his wife and 4-year-old son sat on the sand.
10:08 AM Aug 30, 2011
A Spring Lake woman, injured when a lift she was working from fell over Saturday night, remains in critical condition today at Spectrum Health Hospital in Grand Rapids. Brenda Blahnik was put into an induced coma on Monday to help relieve pressure on the brain. Blahnik's husband, Andy, said this morning that doctors planned to do surgery sometime today to further relieve the pressure. Blahnik's prognosis remains unclear at this time, her husband said.
10:06 AM Aug 30, 2011
Authorities said a Muskegon man who fatally shot his wife before killing himself was a state corrections officer. Muskegon police said they found the bodies of 36-year-old Jesus Flores and his 35-year-old wife Jennifer in their home on Sunday. WWMT-TV reported Jesus Flores worked at the Brooks Correctional Facility in Muskegon. The station said Jennifer Flores' brother saw her husband pull out a gun and shoot her. The couple were recently married.
1:38 PM Aug 29, 2011
One person is dead and several people are hurt after a serious crash in Zeeland Township. Police told WZZM-TV that a car traveling southbound on 56th Avenue ran the stop sign and was hit broadside by an SUV. The driver of the car was pronounced dead at the scene. Four other people in that car suffered serious injuries. One person was flown to the hospital by AeroMed. Three people in the SUV suffered less serious injuries.
10:42 AM Aug 29, 2011
A Grand Haven couple received serious injuries in a two-car accident late Sunday afternoon at the intersection of Cleveland Street and 24th Avenue. Walter and Sonja Draeger, both 72, of Grand Haven, were traveling east on Cleveland Street just after 5 p.m. Sunday when their 1990 Mazda Miata was struck by a southbound car, said Sgt. Jon Wolffis of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. The driver of the other car, 16-year-old Ashley Keizer of Marne, failed to stop her 1998 Chevrolet Venture at a stop sign before proceeding into the intersection, Wolffis said.
5:24 PM Aug 29, 2011
A Spring Lake woman remains in critical condition at Spectrum Hospital in Grand Rapids today following an accident Saturday night at the Spring Lake Aquatic and Fitness Center where she is employed. Brenda Blahnik suffered spinal and head injuries in the incident, according to her husband, Andy Blahnik. She is in the surgical critical care area at the Meijer Heart Center where she is recovering from spinal surgery, which was performed on Sunday, he said.
1:52 PM Aug 29, 2011
A Crockery Township man escaped a fire that destroyed his mobile home early this evening. Firefighters were called to the secluded home in the 17000 block of 120th Avenue when neighbors reported heavy black smoke coming from the area shortly after 6 p.m. Homeowner Mark Mitchell was found in a nearby camper and was checked by paramedics before refusing further treatment. The man said he was awakened by his howling cat, started investigating, then was forced out of the home by heavy smoke.
5:20 PM Aug 29, 2011
Six vehicles were involved in a crash on the M-104 bridge approaching the drawbridge late Saturday morning. Sgt. Curt Theune of the Spring Lake/Ferrysburg Police Department said traffic was stopped on the westbound M-104 bridge, approaching U.S. 31, shortly after 10:30 a.m. Several cars and a garbage truck collided.
Aug 27, 2011 (All day)
Two suspects who allegedly broke into a Grand Haven Township business on Friday morning are being linked to other crimes in the region, according to Ottawa County Sheriff's Department Lt. Mark Bennett. A 42-year-old and a 32-year-old were apprehended by the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department in Marne after the suspects allegedly broke into Lake Cycles, 12200 West Olive Road at 1 a.m. Friday During the stop, officers discovered items believed to have been stolen from the Grand Haven Township store. The two individuals were taken into custody, police said.
11:00 AM Aug 26, 2011
Two men were arrested on outstanding warrants following a traffic stop early Thursday morning at the intersection of U.S. 31 and VanWagoner Road. Spring Lake/Ferrysburg Police pulled over a 1972 Chevrolet which officers observed weaving all over the road on northbound U.S. 31 about 3:15 a.m. Police said four people were in the vehicle, and two of them were observed attempting to hide or destroy pills, alcohol or suspected crack cocaine during the stop.

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