The Lake County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit saved the lives of two teenagers who were in need of rescue on Lake Michigan, just a week after the unit resumed patrols on the lake.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit’s dedicated Lake Michigan Watercraft was on patrol around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Marine unit deputies were approximately a mile from the Lake Bluff shoreline, according to Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
They observed two people on paddle boards floating outward toward the center of Lake Michigan.
Covelli said the two 16-year-olds, a girl from Lake Bluff and a boy from Wauconda, were not able to overcome the wind and lake current, which continued pulling them away from the shoreline.
The teens were not wearing life vests and did not have their phones or any other type of communication devices.
Marine unit deputies pulled them from the lake and were able to retrieve their paddle boards.
The teens were uninjured and safely reunited with family at the Lake Forest Marina, Covelli said.
“This is what this Sheriff’s Lake Michigan Patrol Boat is all about – saving lives. I am so grateful we were able to replace our previous Lake Michigan boat that was retired in 2018,” Sheriff John Idleburg said.
“This allowed our marine unit deputies to save two young lives within a week of resuming patrols,” Idleburg said.
The rescue comes less than a week after the sheriff’s office announced they were resuming patrols on Lake Michigan waters thanks to a new watercraft.
The new Fluid Watercraft Inflatable Patrol Boat features twin 225 horsepower engines and is capable of carrying 14 passengers.
The new boat is named in memory of fallen Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy Gary D. Murphy, who was killed in the line of duty in June 1976.
The sheriff’s office had been unable to patrol Lake Michigan since 2018 due to an outdated watercraft that was retired because of mechanical and safety issues.