Lake Michigan is being called the “deadliest” of all the Great Lakes.

Why? Doesn’t Lake Superior hold some kind of record for shipwrecks? Lake Huron has an abundance of wrecks itself. There are no sharks…..so why is Lake Michigan – the pearl of the Great Lakes - getting this label?

No, it has nothing to do with the 'Lake Michigan Triangle'.

When people vacation/visit the beaches of Lake Michigan, it’s to get away, relax, and forget the problems of the world. Researchers say it’s this state of complacency that causes many deaths in Lake Michigan…by drowning.

The waves in Lake Michigan can get huge, and the power of these waves hitting a person can take you by surprise. Not just that, but after one wave hits you, here comes another...and another...and another. It can be relentless.

The amount of drownings in this Great Lake seem to be increasing every year. Whether swimming or boating, no matter what race, what religion, what sex… the lake doesn’t play favorites. An average of 38 people die in Lake Michigan every year, more than any other Great Lake. The lake takes the lives of not just Michiganders, but those in Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. The deadliest part of the lake in Michigan is in the southwest part of the state, down around the Indiana border.

The Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project began keeping a record of the deaths in Lake Michigan ever since 2010 and by 2020 more deaths occurred than any other year.

The waves will pound you, the undertow will grab you…you may scream…but many of these public beaches do not have lifeguards. With the influx of drownings every year, many beaches now have warnings and instructions what to do if you’re caught in an undercurrent or rip current and can’t escape. Even so, there are those who will ignore them and think they’re immune to the dangers.

Guess again.

“The lake will take…..and it won’t give back.”

'DEADLIEST OF THE GREAT LAKES'

MORE GREAT LAKES-RELATED STUFF:

The Shipwreck 'Atlanta'

The Real Edmund Fitzgerald

Devil's Kitchen

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