Search resumes for missing swimmer at Evanston's Lighthouse Beach

EVANSTON, Ill. (WLS) -- Lighthouse Beach in Evanston officially reopened to swimming Tuesday morning when lifeguards came on duty as the search continues for a missing swimmer.

The beach was closed all day Monday as recovery efforts for the missing 41-year-old continued. Those efforts restarting Tuesday, albeit, in a pared down manner.

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A surface and shoreline search is what Evanston's Fire Department said it conducted Tuesday morning as the effort to recover the body of a man who went missing off of Lighthouse Beach Sunday afternoon entered a third day. The man apparently drowned after witnesses said he and a woman jumped in to help two teenage girls who had gotten into trouble.

"It just didn't look like everything was going well so I got down to my shorts and jumped in water, grabbed mother and the daughter and one of the other girls and pulled them up," Joe Flanagan, who rescued the people in the water, said.

Up to ten agencies were involved in the initial effort to find the 41-year-old, making use of sonar and other technologies, but to no avail. Tuesday morning, Evanston's fire department put three of their vessels in the water

"We have trained personnel doing visual searches," Evanston Fire Chief Matt Smith said. "We also involved the use of an aerial drone to have faster more accurate and zooming capabilities along the shoreline. And any water than can be visualized. Unfortunately with the conditions remaining difficult to view in the lake we were not able to visualize anything at this point."

According to the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project 16 people have drowned in Lake Michigan so far this year. A beach hazard statement was in effect Sunday when this latest incident happened, with a red flag warning in place alerting swimmers to not get into the water.

Evanston only just instituted the flag system this year. With Fourth of July weekend coming up, officials are pleading with beachgoers to be safe.

"It doesn't matter how strong of a swimmer you are," Evanston Fire Field Chief Sean Malloy said. "At the end of the day. Those currents are going to take you out there. Just be careful. Follow the advice of lifeguards. Follow the advice of any signage and try to stay out of the water if conditions aren't good."

Because of water conditions, the search has been suspended once again, but officials said they will restart as conditions merit of actionable information becomes available.