Speed, lighting, and high lake levels are all factors investigators are focused on in a fatal boat crash on Lake Michigan. NBC 5’s Ash-har Quraishi has the story.
One person was killed and two others were injured when a boat crashed on Lake Michigan early Thursday, authorities say.
The incident took place just before 2 a.m. on the lake near the 2200 block of North Lake Shore Drive, just south of Fullerton Avenue, according to Chicago police and fire officials.
A boat traveling northbound hit a jetty due to the high water levels, the Chicago Fire Department's Deputy District Chief of Marine Dive Operations Jason Lach said during a news conference. A 28-year-old woman, identified as Jessica Ceja of Vernon Hills, was ejected from the boat, landing in the water about 300 to 400 meters away from the impact.
Two others, another 28-year-old woman and an adult male whose age was not known, were found in the water in the vicinity of the boat, which had subsequently capsized, police and fire officials said.
The crash prompted a massive search with helicopters, boats and dive teams. Crews found Ceja who had been ejected about 40 minutes after the crash, underwater and unresponsive. Authorities said she was not wearing a life preserver at the time of the crash.
She was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center where she was pronounced dead, authorities said. The Cook County medical examiner's office could not immediately confirm the fatality and further details, including her identity, were not available.
The other woman was also taken to Illinois Masonic, where she was listed in critical condition, while the man was taken to an area hospital where he refused treatment, authorities said.
Fire officials said the water level of the lake is very high and they’ve had some incidents with boats not being able to see the jetties. Officials were still investigating the incident, including the speed of the boat at the time of the impact, as of Thursday morning.
