Boater missing near McCormick Place; 3 other swimmers pulled from Lake Michigan in 24 hours
CHICAGO (CBS)-- Divers were searching Lake Michigan for a missing boater near McCormick Place on Tuesday, after a man and a 14-year-old boy died, and a woman was left in critical condition after being pulled from Lake Michigan in separate incidents within 24 hours on Monday and Tuesday.
Shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday, Chicago Fire Department officials said a person went for a swim off a 27-foot boat about a mile offshore from McCormick Place, and did not resurface.
By 10:30 a.m., the rescue operation had become a recovery effort, with CPD and U.S. Coast Guard crews taking over primary jurisdiction, according to the Fire Department.
Around 2:15 a.m. Tuesday, police said a witness told officers a 46-year-old woman did not surface after diving into the water near Montrose Harbor. The CPD Marine Unit pulled the woman from the water. She was taken to Illinois Masonic Hospital in critical condition.
By 5 p.m. on Tuesday, the marine unit search had been suspended.
Just after 10:20 p.m. Monday, the Chicago Police Department Marine Unit responded to the lakefront near 49th Street, after a group of people were seen jumping into the water, and 27-year-old man did not come back up. The 27-year-old was pulled from the water in critical condition and later died at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
As CBS 2's Marybel González reported Monday, this comes as there is growing concern for safety – because Chicago beaches will no longer have lifeguards on duty as the summer season officially ends.
Monday afternoon, there was a desperate attempt to save a 14-year-old boy from Lake Michigan in East Chicago, Indiana. The East Chicago Fire Department confirmed the teen was out swimming with friends when he went under.
The teen, K'Mari Mack, was pronounced dead at St. Catherine Hospital. The Lake County Coroner's Office identified Mack and ruled his death and accident from asphyxia due to drowning.
The incident happened when lifeguards were still on duty, but they are done for the season after the Labor Day holiday weekend.
"What we just want people to understand is that knowing how to swim is not water safety. Water safety is understanding that there could be wind conditions which can create waves as well as dangerous currents," said Dave Benjamin, executive director of the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project, which tracks drownings in Lake Michigan.
Benjamin added that warm air and water temperatures, even well after Labor Day, could result in more people going to the lakefront for a swim. He said without lifeguards, for those who go into any body of water, in the event of an emergency, "you're likely on your own."
Last year, the Chicago Park District installed 115 life rings along the lakefront, under pressure from water safety advocates. A new state law passed last year also requires all private and government-owned piers and drop-off points to be equipped with rescue gear such as easily accessible flotation devices or life rings.
Experts have said it's best for anyone swimming in the lake to know where such rescue equipment is, in case of an emergency.
