Fisherman faces Feds for allegedly diverting Platte River
Let’s take a momentary break from the usual unpleasantness of politics and other state shortcomings — perceived or not — and point the spotlight at a Frankfort, MI man, a human beaver, if you will, who would appear to do what only Greek heroes could…singlehandedly divert the flow of a river! In this case, not to clean long-neglected stables but to make a boat path.
^Photo^ ^courtesy^ ^of^ ^U.S.^ ^Attorney’s^ ^Office/Google^ ^Earth^ ^image^
Federal prosecutors said National Park Rangers saw Andrew Blair Howard, of Frankfort, shoveling a channel between the river and lake on Aug. 15, 2022, making a clear path from a boat launch to the lake. Park rangers also observed Howard placing rocks to a dam to divert the river’s water into the lake, improving boating access to Platte Bay in Benzie County.
The new river channel eventually grew to 200 feet wide, federal prosecutors wrote, and attracted “an influx in the number of fishermen that came to Platte River boat launch to take advantage of the favorable conditions of access created by the new channel.”
Federal prosecutors say he tampered with the Platte River by manipulating its course and vandalized the federal park property by marring the appearance of the river and its banks.
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