Two brothers died after falling through thin ice on a lake in northern Michigan, authorities said.
The Kalkaska County Sheriff’s Office reported that deputies were called to Island Lake, near Island Lake Road and Dockery Road, just before 11 p.m. local time on Friday, Dec. 6, after a report of someone “yelling for help on the lake.”
Investigators later determined that a 22-year-old man — identified as Johnathan Brake — and two boys, ages 13 and 14, had broken through the ice. According to the sheriff’s office, the 14-year-old managed to crawl out of the fractured ice and shout for help. Brake’s girlfriend, who had gone out to look for the group, heard his cries.
Deputies found the 14-year-old on the ice and rescued him. He was taken to Kalkaska Memorial Health Center, where he was treated and later released.
Brake was pulled from the water around 11:40 p.m. Despite efforts to save him, he was pronounced dead at the same hospital. By the next morning, authorities located the 13-year-old’s body in approximately seven to eight feet of water. Local outlets UpNorthLive and Patch reported that Brake and the 13-year-old were brothers.
Kalkaska Township Fire Department Capt. Kyle Jenkins told UpNorthLive that the rescue conditions were extremely challenging, noting the long distances and lack of equipment like ropes and sleds at certain points. He described responders moving along the shoreline in flotation suits, repeatedly breaking through thin ice and sinking into mud as they tried to climb back onto the surface.
In a Facebook post after the incident, the Whitewater Township Fire Department reminded residents that current ice conditions in the area are highly unreliable. The department warned that “no ice is safe ice, especially near inlets, outlets, or moving water,” and urged people to stay off the ice and keep children and pets away from shorelines.
