On August 7, 2025, at 1:07 p.m., the Newaygo County Sheriff’s Office, along with the Big Prairie and Croton Township fire departments, was dispatched on the east side of Hardy Dam near Operator’s Village Day Park for a drowning incident.

Deputies and dive team members arrived within 10 minutes of the call. As deputies arrived, Big Prairie and Croton Township fire department personnel located a 24-year-old man from White Cloud underwater and were transporting him to shore.

When the man was brought to shore, he had no pulse. CPR was immediately started by local sheriff's office and fire department personnel. Life EMS arrived and assisted with lifesaving measures. The man regained a pulse and was transported to Corewell Health in Big Rapids, then via AeroMed to Corewell Health Butterworth in Grand Rapids, where he remains in critical condition as of Thursday evening.

The Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Big Prairie Fire Department, Croton Township Fire Department, Life EMS, and Newaygo County Central Dispatch.

_{Release and photo courtesy of Newaygo County Sheriff's Office.}