Roll of Honor
Incident
Lake Ranger William Stewart drowned while attempting to retrieve his patrol boat, which had been blown away from the shore of an island in Lake Hefner. Officers had received a call stating that the ranger's boat was discovered beached on the northeastern shore of the lake, with its motor still running. A search of the island revealed his duty belt, boots, and hat on the island, approximately one-half mile from where his boat was discovered. Investigators believed that he was conducting a routine check of the island when his boat was set adrift due to extremely high winds. They believed that he drowned in the churning water when he attempted to swim out to the boat to retrieve it. Ranger Stewart had served with the Oklahoma City Lake Patrol for approximately one year.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and son.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-OK-62306CFF- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
You barely got started.
Lake Ranger Stewart gave the Oklahoma City Lake Patrol 1 year.
Thank you for your service to the Oklahoma City community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Lake Ranger Stewart.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Lake Ranger William L. Stewart, Jr. is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,756 officers honored here.
In OK, 135 of 582 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 23.2% of this state's fallen. That is 23.2 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Oklahoma City Lake Patrol, 1 of 2 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William L. Stewart, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How William L. Stewart, Jr. Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William L. Stewart, Jr. is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
1 officer from Oklahoma City Lake Patrol are honored on badge.nw.
