A search for a child seen going into Lake Michigan at Washington Park Beach was suspended Monday after dangerous water conditions made the dive operation unsafe and left rescuers injured. The incident remained ongoing after crews were forced to pull back.
The LaPorte County Dispatch Center received the report at about 5:43 p.m., setting off a response that drew the Michigan City Fire Department, Michigan City Police Department, Indiana Department of Natural Resources and La Porte County Emergency Medical Service. By then, bystanders had already said the child, wearing red shorts, disappeared beneath the surface on the east side of the catwalk, just south of the lighthouse.
The search effort brought in four MCFD divers, one DNR diver, a fishing charter boat and drone technology, a combination that showed how quickly a routine rescue call turns into a large operation on the lake. But the water that responders were trying to search was also the water that made the search dangerous: challenging conditions, strong currents, changing wave action and limited visibility can overwhelm swimmers and rescuers in moments, and that risk was enough to stop the dives.
Three MCFD divers sustained minor injuries and were taken to the hospital for evaluation. A DNR diver was injured and evaluated by EMS at the scene. That is the hard fact at the center of this case: the rescue effort had to be halted not because the search was complete, but because continuing would have put more lives at risk.
Officials said the incident remained ongoing and that additional information would be released as it became available. For now, the unresolved question is whether the child was found after the suspension, and the answer is not yet in the record.
