Body Found In Highland Park Beach Identified As Elgin Woman

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — The body of a woman found washed ashore in Highland Park Saturday morning is a swimmer who went missing last Sunday, according to Lake County Coroner Howard Cooper. Lena Lemesh, 52, was found on a beach around 10 a.m. at the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve, a few miles north of where she was last seen alive while in Lake Michigan with other members of a swimming group. The preliminary results of an autopsy conducted Tuesday suggest she drowned, Cooper said.

On Nov. 4, Highland Park police and fire departments were called to a report of swimmers in distress and found two swimmers missing and dangerous lake conditions when they arrived, according to the city. Emergency personnel were able to bring to shore an unresponsive man but did not locate Lemesh.

Stanislaw Wlosek Jr., 46, of Itasca, was taken to Highland Park Hospital and pronounced dead on arrival. Preliminary autopsy results suggested he died of drowning, according to the coroner's office.

Wlosek and Lemesh had been participating in a recreational cold-water swimming group with at least seven other people, according to the city of Highland Park.

A coast guard helicopter and searches from the air by the Chicago Police Department and the volunteer group Pilots for Hope assisted in the search. Lake conditions were initially too hazardous for search crews on boats, according to the city of Highland Park.

Park Avenue Beach is a non-swimming beach designed for boats and other watercraft. As a result, swimming and wading are not permitted to prevent accident and ensure boater safety, Highland Park Assistant City Manager Rob Sabo told the Daily Herald. He said the group had informally "gathered Sunday to recreationally attempt to enter the lake in cold-weather conditions."

Earlier: Missing Woman, Dead Man Identified After Highland Park Group Swim