WHITE LAKE TWP., Mich. (WXYZ) — A woman was severely injured after being hit by a boater while swimming in White Lake Township over the weekend.
It happened Saturday afternoon on Pontiac Lake. The Oakland County Sheriff's Department said the boat involved did not stop, and they're now asking the public for help.
Watch Brett Kast's report below
A sunny Saturday on Pontiac Lake was nearly a fatal tragedy for 40-year-old Beth Ayers of Fenton, who had rented a pontoon with a friend, and was swimming in the water next to the boat at around 1:30 p.m. Her friend was watching from on board when another boater came speeding towards them.
"All of a sudden he mentioned there was a boat coming really fast in fact he screamed it at my daughter and she looked up and the boat was nearly right on top of her, they didn't even slow down," said Mick McCanna, Beth's father.
McCanna said his daughter made a quick decision to dive deeper into the water, avoiding a hit to her head and likely saving her life.
“At the very last second she was able to dive down thankful because otherwise we’d be talking a different story today," McCanna said.
But the boat hit her hard in the back. She was helped to the boat, then brought to shore, where an ambulance took her to the ICU, where she still is.
"Her injuries are pretty substantial she has a cracked vertebra, cracked ribs, laceration on the lungs, lung bruising, liver bruising, blood clots and a chest tube to drain the blood," McCanna said.
The boat that hit Ayers didn't stop, and now investigators with the Oakland County Sheriff's Office are working to identify it, describing it as a white speed boat or jet boat with dark accent driving.
"You had to see something, or you had to know you hit something especially if you hit someone in the back, there would be a thump," McCanna pointed out.
Boaters like Dusty Oskey hope the driver is caught soon. He says that the news of the incident spread on the lake quickly.
“Really shocked but there's a lot of boats out here that go Lickety split all over the place," Oskey said.
Ayers is a mother of three, who now faces time off work and a long road to recovery. Her family is raising money to help, while asking for someone who knows something to come forward.
“It’s terrifying because you don't know, you don't know the extent of the internal injuries, you don't know how long it’s going to take to recover, but one thing we do know is that she’s alive and we’re very thankful for that," McCanna told me.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Oakland County Sheriff's Office. You can contribute to the family's GoFundMe at this link.
