Volume 2, Issue 10 AUGUST 2, 2024
YOUR LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED NONPROFIT NEWS SOURCE
Oceana to host its First National Night Out
Oceana County citizens and visitors are invited to attend the county’s first National Night Out (NNO) and Preparedness Fair, Tuesday, August 6, at the new Shelby Township Park from 4-8 p.m. The park is located at 4101 W. Buchanan Road, Shelby. Attendees will be joining over 38 million neighbors, across 18 thousand communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories and military bases worldwide. According to the National Night Out website (www.natw.org), NNO is held each year on the first Tuesday in August and “...is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. National Night Out enhances the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement while bringing back a true sense of community. Furthermore, it provides a great opportunity to bring police and neighbors together under positive circumstances.” Along with the traditional outside lights and front porch vigils, most
communities celebrate National Night Out by hosting block parties, festivals, parades, cookouts and other various community events with safety demonstrations, seminars, youth events, visits from emergency personnel, exhibits and more. Here in Oceana County, local law enforcement will be combining their first-ever NNO with “Preparedness Month,” which usually takes place in September. “With a limited volunteer base, we felt this was a more effective way to utilize our volunteers, time and resources,” Oceana Emergency Management Director Troy Maloney said. “We plan to have safety education and vehicles on hand from Great Lakes Energy and Consumers Power, fire departments, ambulance crews, Mason-Oceana 911, Michigan DNR and the county road commission, as well as numer-
ous booths sharing safety education for all ages. Everyone is welcome, and the event is completely free! The event will include free food and beverages, hands-on education and fun activities, including inflatables from Grace Adventures, and water games hosted by our fire departments. Cornhole and face painting will also be part of the festivities. Shelby and Hart High School football teams will be on hand to assist and WMOM of Ludington will be on site doing a live radio broadcast of the event.” National Project Coordinator Matt Peskin said, “This is a night for our nation to stand together and promote awareness, safety and neighborhood unity. National Night Out showcases the vital importance of police-community partnerships and citizen involvement. When law enforcement and the community work closely together, some amazing things
can happen.” National Night Out is nationally sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch (NATW), ADT, Starbucks, Associa, Law Enforcement Against Drugs and Violence (L.E.A.D.) and co-sponsored locally by the Oceana County Sheriff’s Department, Peterson Farms Inc. and Lewis Adventure Farm & Zoo. “We couldn’t be more excited about hosting our first-annual national night out event at the brand new Shelby Township Community Park,” Undersheriff Ryan Schiller exclaimed. “You will not want your family to miss this event! You can find our event on Facebook and Instagram. We hope to see you there!” For more information on National Night Out, please visit natw.org.
The Primary Election is Tuesday, August 6. Please visit the Oceana County Clerk’s website to see what is on the ballot in your municipality. A full list of results will be in next week’s edition.
Law enforcement investigates incident at Little Sable Point By Steve Gunn
The Oceana Echo Community Contributor
PERMIT NO 62
PRSRT STANDARD NON PROFIT U.S. POSTAGE
RESIDENTIAL POSTAL CUSTOMER PAID ECRWSS BIG RAPIDS, MI 49307
The Oceana County Sheriff’s Department is still investigating an apparent trespassing and vandalism incident at the Little Sable Point Lighthouse at Silver Lake State Park in late June, which resulted in damage to a U.S. Coast Guard radio that was inside the facility. Oddly, the law enforcement response to the break-in began with
a false report of a sinking boat on Lake Michigan near the lighthouse, which drew dozens of U.S. Coast Guard boats and a Wisconsin-based rescue helicopter to the area. No boat was found, but the follow-up investigation revealed that vandals had somehow found their way into the lighthouse, destroyed a marine band radio and attempted to vandalize the lens that emits the beacon from the lighthouse. The troubling incident at the lighthouse comes as the historic structure is celebrating its 150th anniversary. The odd events occurred on the night of June 24, as heavy storms and high winds moved into West Michigan and caused a tremendous amount of damage to property, leaving many without electricity. The heavy winds created high waves and dangerous conditions on Lake Michigan, which made the report of a sinking vessel more believable for authorities. “Our dispatch was notified by the Coast Guard that a ship or boat was in distress and called Mayday and was sinking off the Silver Lake sand
dune area near the lighthouse,” Oceana County Sheriff Craig Mast said. “Our marine patrol went out and found the Coast Guard on the scene with boats and aircraft. “Our marine patrol began searching with the other rescue teams. A helicopter came out of Milwaukee. We sent boat patrol deputies to the lighthouse to look out (over the lake). When the deputies arrived at the lighthouse, they discovered that somebody was already there, which was very strange because it is usually locked. The officers went to the top of the lighthouse but didn’t see anything on the lake except rescue boats. “Eventually, the helicopter ran low on fuel and left. The Coast Guard left and we called the search off, as well. We never found any debris, witnesses or anything to believe there was anything out there (in the water).” Mast said deputies caught a glimpse of several people near the lighthouse, but were more concerned about the search and rescue operation on the lake, and proceeded to the top of the structure to look out over the water for any boats in distress.
The next day, the sheriff’s department learned about the apparent vandalism inside the lighthouse. “The following day, we were contacted by state park representatives,” Mast said. “They knew we had officers in the lighthouse the night before. They mentioned that a marine band radio in the lighthouse had been broken. We assured them that none of our deputies had damaged the radio. They also discovered that the lens that emits the light from the lighthouse had been manipulated. It was not damaged, but it had been touched.” Investigators are operating on the theory that the vandals used the marine band radio to call in the false report of the vessel in distress before destroying the device. There was evidence at the scene that authorities are tracking, but no arrests have been made, according to Mast. The evidence is currently being processed and examined at the Michigan State Police crime lab, he said. The sheriff was not sure if any locks on the lighthouse door had been broken or exactly how the vandals found
their way inside. “We are investigating the theory that people had used the radio to make the fictitious report about a boat that was sinking, then damaged the radio afterward,” Mast said. “We also believe they attempted to manipulate the light on the lighthouse, which is a unique and very expensive lens. “We have collected some evidence to try to determine who had ac-
cess to the lighthouse and made a false report to a federal authority. The Coast Guard is assisting in the investigation. We are interested in criminal charges.” Sheriff Mast stated that the entire incident was expensive for the Coast Guard and potentially dangerous to rescue personnel on the lake. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Sheriff’s Department at (231) 8732121. ”Filing a false report is a felony,” Mast said. “Another is illegally accessing the lighthouse, which is a national landmark, and damaging property inside the facility. Several charges might apply to those people responsible for this. “The aircraft that flew out of Milwaukee, all of the Coast Guard boats, all of their personnel were put in potential harm’s way. All of the fuel that was burned (during the rescue operation), the overtime wages – somebody is responsible for all of this. “We are working on the case now with evidence obtained at the scene, but we’re not at a point where we can name names.”