Crews searching for missing man in reservoir in Wood Dale

Emergency crews continued to search a reservoir in Wood Dale for a missing 52-year-old man Wednesday.

DuPage County officials have begun draining the reservoir in an attempt to locate the missing man.

At about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, crews responded to a 911 call reporting a possible drowning at the Wood Dale/Itasca Reservoir. Witnesses reported seeing a man swimming before going under and not resurfacing, according to a Forest Preserve District of DuPage County spokesperson.

The average depth at the time of the incident was approximately 4 feet with some deeper areas. It does have a soft silt bottom, which can complicate search efforts, the spokesperson added.

Swimming is prohibited at the reservoir and all forest preserve waters.

Divers conducted search operations for more than three hours Tuesday night using sonar. Crews also performed a coordinated line search of the bottom in the area where the man was last seen. Sonar was deployed again Wednesday morning, along with a cadaver dog, according to the spokesperson.

DuPage County Stormwater Management is responsible for draining the reservoir.

Water levels have dropped approximately 12 to 18 inches since they started draining the reservoir shortly after 11:30 a.m., the spokesperson said via email shortly before 5:30 p.m. The process is moving more slowly than anticipated.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources Conservation Police also are on site and are using a robotic watercraft equipped with sonar to support the search.