Concerns about Chicago-area water safety rise after teenage girl and woman die in Lake Michigan

CHICAGO – As Chicago-area beaches fill with swimmers, boaters and jet skiers, officials are emphasizing the critical need to take safety precautions.

This comes after two people were killed in Lake Michigan on Monday.

“There are all the similarities between just getting in water over your head and not having the education or the proper flotation device,” said Dave Benjamin of the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project .

At 2:30 p.m., emergency responders rescued two people in a near-drowning incident in Montrose Harbor. The Chicago Fire Department reported that a man and woman were found in the lake, in a no-swimming area.

Earlier today, at 10 a.m., a 16-year-old boy was killed when the raft he was on capsized in Lake Michigan. A second 16-year-old boy was rescued by a passerby.

Benjamin pointed to wind as a potential danger for lakegoers.

In Winnetka, at 7 a.m., emergency crews recovered the body of a 50-year-old woman following the capsize of a 12-foot sailboat she was aboard. The vessel was approximately 2 to 3 miles offshore and search efforts lasted several hours.

Meanwhile, authorities continue to search for a man who fell from a boat near Chicago's “Play Pen” at 700 Lake Shore Drive on Saturday.