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After years of crashes and cries for help, residents along a stretch of Lake St. Clair shoreline in Essex County fear worse tragedies could be coming.
Not far offshore near Russell Woods Road sits a small island of rocks — often concealed just below the surface of the water — which has caused multiple boat and jet ski crashes.
Joseph Mikhail said he has tried repeatedly over the years to get the Municipality of Lakeshore and other agencies to deal with the danger, with little response and no promise of action.
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“Every year you have these kids on jet skis thinking the water is safe, and they zip past my house, and you hear a clunk, clunk, clunk,” said Mikhail. “Lots of crashes. I know of many, many people who have had their boats or jet skis ripped.”
“I watch them zip by my house, and I watch them crawl back from my house.”
The rocks often barely peak above the surface of the water. At other times of the year, they are covered by mere inches of water. There are no buoys or other markers near them to warn of potential danger.
On a recent visit to the area, the rocks were hidden so close beneath the surface that it appeared as if the birds perched on them were walking on water.
“When the water is a little bit high and other people don’t know that there is a huge rock pile there, we’re always afraid that somebody is going to hit it, somebody’s boat is going to turn over or a Sea-Doo is going to turn over,” said Almas Azam, who lives on the shoreline.
“Actually, we have seen that happen over the 10 years that we’ve lived here. We’ve actually seen people turn over and then they’re calling.
“We’re going out and waving. ‘Do you need help?’”
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There have also been many close calls, she said.
“We’re afraid that somebody is going to hit the island and we’re holding our breath, like, ‘Oh my God!’” said Azam. “Then they kind of go over it. So, a lot of fears and scares happen there.”
Azam said she has never seen anyone seriously injured in a crash against the rocks, but the risk is there.
“Who knows? Depending on what their speed is, depending on how they trip over,” she said. “Did they lose consciousness on hitting the water? Did they hit a rock? Anything like that could happen.
“It’s an accident-prone place.”
Mikhail said he has complained to the Municipality of Lakeshore and Essex Region Conservation Authority (ERCA) for several years.
He sent the latest email last week to several municipal and ERCA officials, and finally received an acknowledgement from Lakeshore Mayor Tracey Bailey.
“I don’t know if they’ll do anything with it,” said Mikhail. “But it’s a danger. There’s no question it’s a danger. I see it first-hand.”
Following several requests for comment from the Windsor Star, Bailey responded with a text message stating she had reached out to ERCA to handle questions on the issue.
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ERCA had already told the Star it has no issue with someone “harvesting” the rocks and removing them, because they don’t constitute a breakwall or other protective shoreline structure.
“With the rock formation out in the lake, not near the shoreline, there is no immediate issue with a shoreline structure,” said James Bryant, ERCA’s director of watershed services.
“Leaving the rocks in place obviously provides some erosion protection for properties behind it as it would act as a breakwater and dissipate some wave energy, but that does not mean that our office would refuse a permit to remove the rocks.”
Bryant added it’s possible other federal or provincial agencies that deal with fish spawning might take issue with the rock removal.
Not everyone concerned about the rocks wants them gone.
“I don’t want to get rid of it,” said Azam, who prefers that buoys be placed in the area. “I just want it to be safe.
“It does have some benefits, too. Wildlife comes there. We have lots of eagles come there. Lots of swans come there. I’m sure there is some other wildlife going on down there too, in terms of baby fish.”
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Whether it’s removal or a marker, Mikail said something must be done.
“They are getting hurt,” he said. There is no question in my mind. I’ve seen them, the damage.
“My biggest concern is there is going to be younger kids out there on jet skis, because they are going too fast. They don’t understand the dangers of the water. They think it’s not like the road.
“No traffic lights, no stops, that they can just go. And they’re going to have somebody sitting on the back of that jet ski and they’re going to go flying, and their head is going to crack against that rock.”
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