Witnesses, police recount search efforts after 7-year-old drowns in Lake Michigan

A seven-year-old boy from South Bend lost his life after disappearing in Lake Michigan at Silver Beach in Saint Joseph.

Police say he died in the emergency room after the hour-long search.

“Last night we had the unfortunate incident of a water rescue which ended up being a drowning,” says Berrien County Sheriff Chuck Heit.

Officers got the call around 9pm Monday for the missing child, and the search and rescue efforts ensured with multiple agencies including the Coast Guard, as well as bystanders.

“We had several first responders, we work closely with St. Joe Public Safety, they had several personnel, we had our personnel, the Coast Guard boat was out, the helicopter was on its way when the recovery took place, so there’s a lot of resources, we had the drone up to help search for it.”

The victim was found after about an hour, but despite life-saving efforts and being rushed to the hospital, he died around 11:15pm.

Police tell ABC57 the victim was enjoying a nice night on the beach with his family when the unthinkable happened.

Among those searching was Berrien County resident Amy Doroh and her two teens.

“I was picking my son up from basketball, and we got the alert that there was a missing child in the water, and I just felt like we needed to come,” explains Doroh, who helped with the search.

They left just minutes before the boy was pulled from the water.

She had held out hope for news of a miracle but was devastated to hear the boy did not make it.

“It was heartbreaking, just heartbreaking,” says Doroh. “As a parent, you want to know where your baby is, so like I said I just kept praying that, please let him be found.”

Sheriff Chuck Heit says it's a tragic illustration of the high risk and unpredictable waters of Lake Michigan.

“It’s just a reminder that Lake Michigan can be a very dangerous place, especially when there were 2–4-foot waves at that time,” Sheriff Heit explains. “The current is very unpredictable, the depths of water, you have sandbars and other issues that you may think is shallow but you get into an area that’s deeper so just typical safety we talk about being careful, but having a good respect for the lake, for the dangers it can possess.”

He says it’s important to be especially careful with Labor Day weekend coming up, where multiple beaches along the lakeshore are likely to be packed.

Experts say in general; Lake Michigan is typically more dangerous this time of year as the lake is warmer, with bigger wave potential.