3 Men At Bachelor Party Rescued After Drifting From Rental Boat During Swim: Police

LAKE COUNTY, IL — A bachelor party celebration nearly turned tragic Saturday when three men disappeared from a rental boat and were found struggling to stay afloat in Petite Lake, authorities said.

Deputies were patrolling the lake at about 2:50 p.m. on Saturday — using a personal watercraft provided by Nielsen Enterprises through Sea-Doo's public safety loan program — when the driver of rental boat carrying a bachelor party flagged them down, according to a news release from the sheriff's office.

The driver, who told deputies he did not have much experience with operating a boat, said three of his friends were missing in the water. Deputies searched the area and found the three swimmers about 100 yards from the boat.

According to the sheriff's office, the swimmers were showing signs of distress and struggling to stay afloat

Using the rescue bars on the personal watercraft, deputies pulled the swimmers to safety before they slipped beneath the surface and returned them to the rental boat

Investigators do not know how long the three swimmers had been in the water before they were rescued.

The group had been near a sandbar where boaters frequently anchor and relax, Chief Christopher Covelli told Patch. The occupants of the rental boat left the area after they were unable to locate their three friends and began searching the lake.

The swimmers had been drinking and were not wearing life jackets, police said.

When the swimmers spotted the boat, they tried to swim toward it but underestimated both the distance and the effects of alcohol on their abilities, Covelli said.

Authorities said the rental boat driver was not under the influence, but alcohol was a factor for the rescued swimmers

No injuries were reported, police said.