St. Charles man drowns at Michigan beach

A 45-year-old west suburban man drowned Saturday in southwestern Michigan while trying to rescue several young family members from Lake Michigan, police said.

South Haven Police said Monday that Martin Jordan of St. Charles was overcome by strong waves and rip tides near the South Beach Pier in South Haven around 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Martin was pronounced dead at the South Haven Community Hospital at 7:20 p.m. after the rescue and resuscitation actions of the South Haven Police Department and South Haven Emergency Services were unsuccessful.

The police department reported that Jordan was swimming with his family and fell victim to the tremendous rip currents around the south pier.

Other swimmers who were at the scene rescued the children, while several police officers and firefighters also aided rescue efforts, said South Haven Police Sgt. Patrick Carlotto. He was unsure how many children were rescued, but said about three or four.

Rescue workers were in the water for about 20 minutes, said Carlotto, and some officers and firefighters had to be rescued themselves due to exhaustion.

Before the fatal accident police said they responded to two similar incidents of swimmers in distress Saturday, but this is the only drowning this summer. Carlotto confirmed the beach doesn't have lifeguards, but signs are posted that warn swimmers about the lake's strong currents and waves.

"Lake Michigan is dangerous and people sometimes don't realize conditions can change very quickly," Carlotto said. "It's not just the currents pulling you under, but when you get near the piers, you can get slammed into a post and be knocked unconscious."

Other people were swimming in the lake at the time of the accident, but Carlotto said beach traffic was lower than normal and he hopes swimmers at South Beach Pier heed warning signs.

"Several police officers and a bystander did risk their lives to try and rescue everyone," he said. "So when people do swim in those conditions, they are risking the lives of the people who will go in after them. We do have life rings on the piers that were used to help rescue the kids, but in those conditions its difficult to even hang onto those."