CHICAGO — Swimmers who flocked to Chicago’s lakefront for the long holiday weekend may have faced some disappointment as the strong winds made for potentially life-threatening conditions on the water.
Several beaches around the city were closed to swimmers on Sunday as the end of the official beach season nears.
“We came to visit family in Chicago and we were like ‘Oh let’s come to the beach, you know, have a good time,’ but then we didn’t know it was going to be this windy,” beachgoer Bella Lopez said.
True Chicagoans know the city is not nicknamed the Windy City because of the weather, but with the sand being whipped around Montrose Beach on Sunday, mother nature was top of mind.
“It is a little windy. I checked the weather, checked a local weather station, but I mean, you can’t really beat it, especially in the city,” Alexander Kupfer-Weinstein, who visited the beach on Sunday, said.
Kupfer-Weinstein came with his friends to play spike ball and while it is not ideal in the windy conditions, everyone was making the most of it, considering summer is drawing to a close.
“This is, in my opinion, the best beach in Chicago so we love to come down here anytime we can,” beachgoer Rishi Kumar said.
Despite the high spirits, there was certainly some disappointment for anyone who was looking to take a dip.
“I think our friends did and then we quickly realized there’s red flags everywhere. So it’s probably not the best idea,” beachgoer Brittani Buccola said.
Swimming was off-limits at Montrose Beach, along with other beaches along the lake, like Foster, North Avenue and Loyola.
Advisories were issued in other areas, while the only Chicago beach where swimming was allowed was at 12th Street.
The National Weather Service has a warning in place through Monday evening about strong currents and potentially life-threatening waves due to the wind.
“It has the potential to, you know, be a very deadly Labor Day weekend,” Dave Benjamin, the Co-Founder of the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project, said.
Benjamin’s nonprofit tracks provides water safety training and tracks drownings annually across the Great Lakes
According to Benjamin, currently Lake Michigan is currently above average, with a third of the year, left to go.
“The record in Lake Michigan is 56 drownings and we are at 44 plus four critical so that could be 48 really quick, we could surpass the 56 record,” Benjamin said.
Visit the Chicago Park District’s website for more information on what beaches are open for swimmers.