Missing Teen's Body Found In Des Plaines River Near Melrose Park
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The body of a missing teenager has been found in the Des Plaines River, not far from the bridge where he jumped in the water on Saturday.
Cameron Sanders, 16, of Villa Park, jumped off an old railroad trestle known as Rainbow Bridge, into the river, while hanging out with a couple friends in Melrose Park on Saturday, but Cameron was pulled under by the current.
After searching for parts of six days, his body was recovered from the river around 10:30 a.m., about 150 yards away from the bridge, in the Thatcher Woods forest preserve, according to the Cook County Sheriff's office, which took over the search on Tuesday.
The sheriff's office said it will continue investigating the circumstances of the case.
One of Sanders' friends tried to rescue him on Saturday after he began struggling in the water.
"The young boy that was already in with him tried to save him," Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said Tuesday.
The teens recorded themselves on cellphone video when they went in the water.
"You could tell the current is incredible, and they're being taken away," Dart said.
The bridge has been a popular hangout for teenagers, and Dart has met with officials with CN Railroad, the owners of the bridge, about restricting access.
CN said the rail line is not used often, but is still a working line.
Meanwhile, a new wrinkle in the story emerged Thursday, WBBM's Steve Miller reports.
As Cameron Sanders' loved ones waited anxiously for news, the call went out for crews to help search. Chicago Fire Department's Squad 7 got the call, but it turns it didn't have any certified divers on that shift.
Fire Department Spokesman Larry Langford says the city requires two certified divers per shift. Later, when it was determined that Squad 7 couldn't supply divers, Squad 2 was called in.
Langford says, as it turned out, the current was too rough for any divers.
He says the Squad 7 officer "is being retrained on proper protocol."
