"Don't take anyone for granted": Friends remember 2 teens who died while cliff jumping along North Shore
LAKE COUNTY, Minn. – A tragedy on the North Shore has left the friends and families of two high school graduates heartbroken.
Investigators say Austin Henning from South St. Paul and Max Williams from Inver Grove Heights both died on Sunday while cliff jumping into Lake Superior. They were spotted struggling in Lake Superior after jumping at Black Beach, which is between Duluth and Grand Marais along the North Shore.
Henning and his friend Parker Radmaker were both planning to rebuild and modify their own cars.
"Don't take anyone for granted," Radmaker said. "You never know when you're going to lose someone."
Radmaker says Henning and Williams were on a couples trip with their girlfriends. The water was aggressive from the storm that went through on Sunday, and the water was cold. Their bodies went into shock and the two were swept away.
The two graduated from Simley High School three weeks before the trip. Henning was about to enroll at a tech college in Illinois, and Williams planned to enlist in the Minnesota National Guard.
Braedyn Bryant, an incoming sophomore called Williams a great friend to look up to.
"He just always had the right mentality. He would go at life with this 'I have to give it my all' positive energy," said Bryant.
The DNR says the temperature of Lake Superior generally stays below 55 degrees, even in the hot summer months. Survival time in the water without a life jacket could be less than two hours.