SILVER LAKE, MICH. — The Silver Lake Sand Dunes are a popular destination for people to drive their ORVs but the designated "test and tune area" can be dangerous. That’s where a woman was killed Sunday while enjoying the day with her family.
Silver Lake Sand Dunes is nirvana for people who own off-road vehicles, but last Sunday tragedy occurred in the test and tune area of the dunes.
“An ORV unit had lost control, apparently, and drifted into the crowd and, unfortunately, hit a person that was watching the area,” said Ron Olson, DNR chief of parks and recreation.
Kadie Price was killed in the accident while she was watching vehicles drag race with her family. They say she was a hero when she pushed her 2-year-old daughter out of the way before she was struck.
READ MORE: How to support family of mom who died saving her daughter
“It's an area where the intent was to have people be able to test their units out; it's relatively flat area,“ said Olson.
Oceana County Sheriff Craig Mast said, “Historically, they've raced up there for as long as I can remember back, and I've lived my whole life here.”
He says drag racing on the dunes is popular and is legal to do when a law was passed in 2021, saying, “It became legal again to drag race on the Silver Lake Sand Dunes. And they've been doing it steadily since then."
The sheriff and DNR say there are many rules and safety regulations to use the dunes and that serious accidents are not common.
“For as much activity that goes on there, you know, statistically it's been relatively safe, until we run into a tragedy, like what happened up there this weekend,” said Mast.
He says the driver involved was not drinking but is still waiting for blood tests. Speed and recklessness are also being looked at.
“A person must operate at speeds that don't become unreasonable, and that there's regulations about operating in a careless manner,” said Olson.
With thousands of vehicles using the dunes, Mast says to make sure your vehicle is safe and always wear your seat belt. Mast said, “You need to use due care and caution. Stay in your vehicle, be aware of your surroundings and try to be safe.”
Sheriff Mast says the investigation will take a couple weeks to complete and the driver involved is cooperating.
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