Illinois Conservation Police investigating fatal boating accident at LaSalle Lake

MARSEILLES - The Illinois Conservation Police is investigating a boating accident at the LaSalle Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area that resulted in the deaths of two Indiana men who had been fishing with their 7-year-old granddaughter.

Just after noon on Sunday, Aug. 18, police received a 911 call about a distressed boater at the 2,000-acre lake near Marseilles. Upon arrival, they saw a capsized vessel and found the girl on the shore with park visitors who came to her assistance. The visitors helped her contact her mother and grandmother.

The girl had been on the 17-foot Crestliner with her grandfather, 53, from Merrillville, Indiana, and her great-grandfather, 80, of Gary, Indiana. She was wearing a life jacket; the two men were not, police said.

Police and first responders from numerous agencies helped search for the men. They were recovered about 7:45 p.m., and the LaSalle County coroner pronounced them dead at the scene.

An investigation into what caused the vessel to capsize is ongoing.