Body pulled from Lake Michigan near 31st Street Harbor ID'd as missing boater: officials

Lorenzo Tobin had been missing since a yacht sank in the area on Friday night, leaving 16 boaters in the water.
Sunday, July 28, 2024
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Crews pulled the body of a missing boater from Lake Michigan near 31st Street Harbor on Sunday afternoon, officials said.

Chicago police said the man's body was pulled from the water at about 12:45 p.m. He was pronounced dead on the scene.



The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office later identified him as 40-year-old Lorenzo Tobin of Country Club Hills.



Tobin had been missing since a yacht capsized and sunk in the area on Friday night.

The U.S. Coast Guard said they received calls about a 25-foot double-decker pleasure yacht capsizing and then sinking around 7:30 p.m. Friday near 31st Street Harbor.

The Coast Guard said 16 people were on the boat at the time of the incident. Everyone except Tobin made it out of the water.

Man still missing after yacht sinks in Lake Michigan on South Side


Three people, a man and two women, were taken to a local hospital for treatment after the incident, all in good condition, police said.



Tobin remained missing, but authorities postponed their search for him on Saturday due to dangerous and choppy conditions.

A witness said he saw the boat speeding in the water on Friday night before flipping over, and then, he heard screams for help.

Search for at least 1 missing person after boat sinks on South Side


A group called Boat Safe Chicago captured drone video of the wreckage just moments after the crash. Jon Meyer with the group was on their boat nearby, enjoying a concert at Northerly Island when the mayday call came in.

"We were the closest boat to it, so we came around the corner... saw the victims in the water... saw them getting helped," Meyer said. "There were a couple other boaters there also helping."



Meyer said there may have been some warning signs ahead of the accident.

"So when they actually turned to go into the harbor, the boat flipped over... several of the passengers had warned the captain hey the boat has a strange lean to it... so it looks like it was taking on water," Meyer said.

In a separate incident, police said a 36-year-old man was pulled from the lake at around 4:32 a.m. Saturday. ABC7 was at 31st Street Harbor as paramedics rushed the person into an ambulance and began to perform CPR.

The man was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center, where he later died. Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding that incident.
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