YANKEE SPRINGS TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A woman died Thursday evening after she jumped into a Barry County lake and was unable to make it back to her boat.
Authorities said the 66-year-old grandmother took her three grandchildren, ages 7 and under, on a pontoon boat on Gun Lake from a public launch at Yankee Springs Recreation Area.
At some point, she jumped into the water to get something that had blown off the boat. After she did that, the boat — which wasn't anchored — drifted away from her with the children still on board.
Authorities said the woman wasn’t able to make it back to the boat and went underwater, leading to her death.
People who were at the lake at the time of the incident helped get the kids back to shore and called 911.
The woman's identity hasn't been released at this point.
