Woman recovered from Lake Michigan after boat capsizes and friend swims to shore, officials say

A woman was recovered from Lake Michigan Monday after a boat capsized two miles off shore, while another woman swam to shore to alert responders, Winnetka officials said.

The two women, in their early 50s, left Evanston and were boating two to three miles into the lake around dusk Sunday when a storm rolled in, wave conditions changed and the boat capsized, Fire Chief John Ripka said.

The women began swimming toward shore but became separated. One woman made it back to land at Tower Road beach in Winnetka around 2 a.m. and called for help, prompting a search for the other woman with at least six boats, drones and helicopters, the chief said.

The woman was recovered later Monday morning a mile off shore north of Winnetka. She was taken to Montrose Beach by the U.S. Coast Guard and placed in the care of the Chicago Fire Department. Details about her condition were not available early Monday.

Both women were wearing life preservers according to the Winnetka Fire Department.

In an unrelated incident in Chicago, fire officials also reported a situation in which one one person made it to shore at Montrose Beach, while another person was rescued by divers dropped from a helicopter.

Paramedics were doing CPR to try to revive the victim, who was in critical condition, on the way to Weiss Memorial Hospital.

The Chicago Fire Department X account asked, “Please wear water flotation gear when on jet ski or any boat in water. Even if close to shore. This can save your life!”