Record high water levels have caused accidents and even a fatality in Lake Michigan, as they wash over breakwalls or make them difficult to see. One boat got stuck on top of a Chicago breakwall (see the picture above) after it hit the wall at night, sending five people to the hospital. The previous week another boat hit a breakwall, killing one person on board.
The high water is covering jetties and breakwalls along vast sections of the lake, making them less visible, particularly at night. The Coast Guard has advised boaters to be aware of the problem, and says that some hazards may be under water.
“We’re really in a situation that hasn’t occurred before,” Tim Kroll, chief of operations at the Chicago U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told WBEZ. “Some of these structures were built a hundred years ago. You don’t really design for these significant outliers, and that’s where we’re at right now.”
For its part, the Coast Guard urged boaters to take extra precautions, slow down and keep a watch out for problems. “Mariners are advised to be extra vigilant while operating their vessels as there may be additional hazards and obstructions that are now submerged but not charted,” it said in a statement.
The Army Corps is thinking of ways to make the breakwalls more visible, including adding a line of buoys along them or installing lights on them. Read more:
