An off-duty Chicago firefighter died while swimming in Lake Michigan early Sunday.
Wilbert Hayes, 43, was swimming off 31st Street Beach with his family after his work shift when he went under the water and did not resurface, the Chicago Fire Department and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.
Divers searched for him and quickly found him underwater, fire officials said.
He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
“While this incident did occur off duty after his shift, we are conducting a full investigation to determine the status of this tragic loss,” Fire Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt said in a statement.
Hayes has been with the department since 2009 and worked on Engine 16.
“We are eternally grateful for his bravery and service, and my deepest sympathies go out to his family, loved ones, and colleagues,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a news release Monday. “Let us keep Engine 16 and all of our city’s first responders in our prayers.”
No other details were immediately available.
