Rowers from 10 local clubs gathered at the Lake Washington Rowing Club, 901 N. Northlake Way, on Sunday, March 20, to honor Seattle Police Harbor Patrol Officer Jackson V. Lone. Mr. Lone drowned while trying to secure the loose tugboat Michael in the Lake Washington Ship Canal last Wednesday, March 16.
The group, including female rowers from the Seattle Police Department (above), rowed to the site where Lone fell into the water, at Third Avenue Northwest and Northwest 36th Street in Fremont, and floated flowers in remembrance of Mr. Lone.
Mr. Lone, 39, was a marine firefighter and certified diver. According to reports, he was underwater for eight to 10 minutes, and his lifejacket and pike pole were found in the water.
The Seattle Police Department and the Department of Labor and Industries are conducting separate investigations into the accident.
Mr. Lone, who once worked as a lifeguard at Green Lake and Magnuson Park as a teenager, graduated from Blanchet High School before attending Shoreline Community College to study criminal justice. He had lived in the Green Lake neighborhood before recently moving to Orcas Island.
He had served with the Seattle Police Department for 18 years, as an East Precinct patrol officer and members of both the Narcotics Unit and Fugitive Warrants Unit. He also worked for a year with a Drug Enforcement Agency's task force. He had been with the Harbor Patrol for five years.
Mr. Lone had received a Chief's Award for heroism in 2001, for his rescue of a suicidal woman who jumped off the Lake Washington Ship Canal Bridge.
Memorial funds have been set up for Lone's family at Washington Mutual Bank (Lone Family Memorial Fund) and Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union (Jackson V. Lone Memorial Fund). Donations can be made at any branch.
Mr. Lone is survived by his wife and 18-month-old son, as well as a sister, two nieces and a stepfather.
A memorial service for Mr. Lone took place yesterday, March 22, at the University of Washington's Bank of America Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. The funeral procession traveled from Evergreen Washelli Cemetery and Funeral Home in North Seattle, down Interstate 5, to the University of Washington.[[In-content Ad]]
