Three swimmers rescued and 21-year-old body recovered in Lake Michigan in Evanston
*Updated: The man was identified as Hussin Abdul-Samad, 21, of the 2300 block of West Devon Avenue in Chicago, according to information from the Cook County medical examiner’s office. He was pronounced dead at 9:20 p.m. in the 1700 block of Sheridan Road in Evanston, near Clark Street Beach and the Cornelia Lunt Park.[1]
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — The body of a 21-year-old man was pulled Saturday evening from Lake Michigan in Evanston near the Clark Street boat ramp after a seven-hour search for the missing swimmer, officials said.
Three other people were rescued from the water earlier in the day, according to Evanston spokesman Patrick Deignan.
The situation began just before 1 p.m. when a 911 caller reported three people struggling in the water. They were found hanging onto a breakwall and pulled out.
Roughly an hour later, crews on the beach found "unclaimed belongings" of another person, which sparked the search for the fourth swimmer. Security camera footage showed the man enter the lake and go underwater before the three others went in.
His body was found around 9 p.m.
According to reporters on the scene, the three others were transported to Evanston Hospital, the daughter and adult male in good condition, and the mother in critical condition, according to Chief Polep.[2]
Chief Polep called the waters “very unpredictable,” and cautioned that beachgoers “should be very mindful of what you’re doing before you go in the water and be well aware of all your surroundings.”
Evanston beaches were closed for swimming for the season earlier in the month.
Notes & References
Sobol, Rosemary, and Paige Fry. “Missing Swimmer Found Dead in Lake Michigan Identified; Mother, Daughter and Good Samaritan Rescued in Evanston Recovering.” chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune, September 19, 2021. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-evanston-fatal-lake-michigan-rescue-20210918-jkd4ltog2jhtxicbktdoigtmgi-story.html. ↩︎
Quattrocki, Tracy. “Three Swimmers Rescued, One Drowned off Clark Street Boat Ramp.” Evanston RoundTable, September 19, 2021. https://evanstonroundtable.com/2021/09/18/three-rescued-one-swimmer-presumed-drowned-off-clark-street/. ↩︎