A Michigan family lost one member following a drowning in Lake Michigan Saturday.
Around 12:28 p.m. on July 13, South Haven police and emergency services responded to several 911 calls of people struggling in Lake Michigan.
Within three minutes of the call, officers were on scene trying to find the individuals.
Bystanders told police one adult had been rescued by a paddle-boarder but that one child was still in the water.
The U.S. Coast Guard Air Support, Van Buren County Sheriff’s Department Dive Team, and the South Haven Area Emergency Services Rescue Boat were called in to help.
According to police, 22 minutes later, the child was located on shore 100 yards south of the South Pier near flag 11.
Rescue teams immediately performed CPR and continued during the transport to Bronson South Haven.
Despite the rescue efforts, the 13-year-old victim was pronounced dead, police say. The victim and his family were visiting from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Witnesses reported the individuals had been swimming and began to drift further away from shore and became exhausted, not able to swim back, police released in a press release.
The National Weather Service forecast for the day began with a green flag advisory for all South Haven Beaches and updated to yellow flag at 11:10 a.m. as wind and wave criteria changed.
