HARRISON TOWNSHIP — A man drowned in Lake St. Clair at around 7:20 p.m. on July 9, despite attempts by bystanders to save his life.

According to Sheriff Mark Hackel, Hani Nasrate Gattie, 44, of Sterling Heights, was out swimming with a friend in about eight to 10 feet of water, about a half-mile offshore from MacRay Harbor, when the incident occurred. The sheriff added that Gattie was also using a “swimming apparatus” while out on the water.

“It’s a normal area where people will actually anchor their boats and go swimming,” said Hackel.

Hackel said that suddenly, Gattie started to drown.

“For some reason, he went underneath,” he said.

Friends and bystanders pulled Gattie from the water, saw he was unconscious, and immediately began performing CPR while bringing him to shore.

“People recognized shortly after that he wasn’t coming up,” said Hackel.

The Harrison Township Fire Department took Gattie to Mount Clemens Regional Hospital as soon as he was brought onshore. However, at 8:15 p.m. that same day, Gattie was pronounced dead.

The sheriff said that the department is still speculating why Gattie drowned, and an autopsy report is due back soon.

— Sarah Cormier