A crew member on a Chicago luxury yacht is being hailed a hero for helping to rescue passengers from the wrecked ship — and losing his life in the process.
The body of Lorenzo Tobin, 40, was recovered from Lake Michigan on Sunday, two days after he disappeared into the water during the tragic incident.
Tobin was working aboard a yacht for a birthday celebration when the boat mysteriously began to capsize around 7:30 pm Friday, his wife Lesley Jackson-Tobin told ABC affiliate WLS-TV reported.
“Lorenzo didn’t know the people whose birthday it was,” Jackson-Tobin said. “He was just there as a deckhand. I mean, honestly, it makes me angry because this should not happen. You know, my husband could swim very well.”
The yacht’s 16 passengers began to realize something was wrong on the boat only shortly before utter chaos unfolded, according to WGN-TV.
“The boat is leaning and leaning, and it’s like ‘Oh, my God,’” passenger Dongina Knight said. “That’s when I fell off the boat.”
Tobin apparently stayed in the water to help the captain and other passengers by assisting people with their life jackets, ultimately risking his life in the process.
“He’s a hero,” Jackson-Tobin said. “I feel like even if he had not been on that boat, would have just been walking by, he would have done the same thing. The fact that he helped people, and he’s the only one that did not make it, I’m angry.”
According to some passengers on the boat, the capsize happened without warning and caused a hectic scene.
“It was real chaotic,” passenger Lennie Williams said. “There was another boat that came in and tried to help some of us, and the boat almost hit me and my wife. So as I’m swimming, I’m kind of kicking the boat to get us to shore.”
Jackson-Tobin said she is working to piece together the tragic events.
“Somebody knows something,” Charles Tibbs, Tobin’s cousin, said. “We just want somebody to give us some steps on what happened.”
The US Coast Guard said they are investigating what caused the yacht to capsize alongside Chicago police and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.