A major fire department search, consisting of boats, divers and drones, is underway after a swimmer in distress went missing on Lake Michigan near Highland Park Saturday afternoon.
The Highland Park Fire Department and Lake County Forest Preserve Police Department responded around 12 p.m. Saturday to Openlands Lakeshore Preserve at Fort Sheridan, 31 Walker Avenue in Highland Park, for a water rescue for a person in distress.
City officials said it was reported that a swimmer was in distress, struggling in the water on Lake Michigan.
A female victim reportedly attempted to jump in and rescue the male but was unable.
A bystander boat rescued the female and attempted to assist the male swimmer but was unable to reach them due to Lake Michigan’s strong currents.
The Highland Park Fire Department water rescue team immediately initiated rescue efforts focused on the swimmer’s last identified location, city officials said.
The Highland Park Police Department deployed a police drone to assist in the search. A Lake Forest Fire Department drone was also deployed.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the box alarm level and then to the third alarm level.
The activation brought numerous fire departments from Lake, McHenry and Cook counties to the scene, including with divers, boats and sonar equipment.
A command post was established near Overlook Road and Johnston Drive by where the swimmer was last seen.
Fire crews were launching boats from the Park Avenue Boat Ramp, 31 Park Avenue in Highland Park.
A member of the dive team was briefly reported missing during the initial search efforts. They were located and uninjured, city officials said.
The incident was deemed to be a “recovery mission” and no longer a rescue mission around 2 p.m.
First responders are continuing to actively search for the missing swimmer as of 3:30 p.m.
Members of the public were asked to avoid the area to allow fire crews to continue dive and sonar operations.