DOOR COUNTY (NBC 26) — Door County is known for the water around it. But this year, the water has turned deadly for many.
Four people have lost their lives in Door County to boating-related incidents so far this year, according to Wisconsin DNR. That is the highest amount of annual fatalities in the agency's records, which date back to 2014.
Since 2024, seven people have died in boating incidents in the county. In the six years before that, there were none at all.
The Door County Sheriff's Office also reported two deaths that happened in Nicolet Bay— the most recent just last Monday.
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"We sit in Door County on over 300 miles of shoreline," said Door County YMCA CEO Tonya Felhofer, whose YMCA hosts a water safety course for pools and open water for its members and the county's school districts.
"We try to work with all of them to ensure that all children have the opportunity to come into the pool and work on water safety," she added about the courses offered to schoolchildren.
Felhofer believes the increase in deaths is tied to growing tourism.
"We see an increase in the number of people (across the county)," she said. "People who have been here maybe don't know our water as well, and don't understand the difference when wind shifts direction, what that means for water, especially when you're on a peninsula."
Felhofer has three recommendations for anyone heading out on the water:
- Wear a life jacket on open water
- Know the currents before you go
- Never go out alone.
