WLS-TV(CHICAGO) — Crews are searching for a 24-year-old woman who went missing after swimming in Lake Michigan on Monday night, ABC Chicago station WLS-TV reported.
The family of Tiara Hardy watched from the shore as searchers in boats and ATVs, as well as drones in the sky, looked for any trace of her.
Tiara Hardy had been swimming at the Marquette Park Beach in Gary, Indiana, with her cousin and a friend Monday evening, but their attempts to get back to shore were thwarted by strong rip currents, authorities said, according to WLS-TV.
A good Samaritan was able to help the other two survivors out of the water, but witnesses say Tiara Hardy went underwater and never resurfaced, WLS-TV reported.
Tiara Hardy’s boyfriend, Adonis Madry, told WLS-TV that she can swim.
“We don’t usually get in the water when we come here, but she can swim,” Madry said.
The Gary Police Department received a call around 7:30 p.m. reporting a possible drowning, according to WLS-TV. No lifeguards were on duty at the time, and authorities said it was too rough for anyone to be in the water.
Tiara Hardy’s father, Arnold Hardy, brought the Bible with him when he and other family members arrived at the beach at sunrise, hoping searchers would find his daughter.
Arnold Hardy expressed frustration that more resources weren’t being utilized in the efforts to find her, saying that there weren’t enough boats on the water and that the helicopter crew left after about two or three hours.
The search resumed Tuesday morning after it was initially suspended overnight due to the dark hazardous water conditions, WLS-TV reported.
Another family member, Catherine Jackson, described Tiara Hardy as a “lovely person.”
“I just want to wake up,” Jackson told WLS-TV. “This just feels like a dream.”
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