Officials probing teens' deaths

From the Sunday, Nov. 16, 2008 edition of the Northwest Herald:

Officials probing teens' deaths
By DIANA SROKA and JENN WIANT

ALGONQUIN -- The Rev. Jim Swarthout and his wife, Claudia, usually describe the view of the Fox River from their home as "breathtaking."

But the day after three Chicago teens drowned during an early-morning paddle boat ride, looking out her window made Claudia Swarthout upset.

"I just felt incredibly, incredibly sad," she said. "If we were awake at 2 in the morning, we possibly could have helped."

The Algonquin couple awoke around 3 a.m. Friday to emergency crews combing the Fox River in search of three students from North Lawndale College Prep Charter High School who were on a school trip at nearby Camp Algonquin. Hours later, Jimmie Avant, 18, Melvin Choice Jr., 17, and Adrian Jones, 16, were pulled from the water, dead.

The teens, honor students and athletes at the West side Chicago school, were among 31 attending an eight-day leadership retreat at the YMCA camp. Preliminary reports showed that as many as 16 students left the Camp Algonquin dorm early Friday morning for an unsupervised paddle boat trip. It was unclear how many students actually went out on the six paddle boats found in the water and whether they were wearing life jackets, said Illinois Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Stacey Solano.

Investigators from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources planned to talk with the other students this week to determine how many people were on the river early Friday, Solano said, and for how long.

The students got into trouble about 25 yards from shore, Solano said Saturday, possibly because plugs to prevent the boats from taking on water and sinking had been removed for the winter. Investigators also planned to take a closer look at the paddle boats this week to determine if they had any other structural problems.

Autopsy results concluded the cause of death was consistent with drowning, according to the McHenry County Coroner's Office.

Solano said she had no information about whether the three victims knew how to swim. The initial investigation did not suggest that alcohol or drugs had played a role in the tragedy, she said, but toxicology reports would not be available for about two weeks.

Monday classes are canceled at North Lawndale College Prep, a charter school on the West Side of Chicago. Instead, grief counselors will be available during school hours, according to the school's Web site.

Saturday, the entrance to Camp Algonquin was roped off with police tape. The Fox River was quiet as Jim Swarthout reflected on the tragedy.

"We also see much life from the camp through our window," Swarthout said. "Amidst the tragedy ... life will move on, and we'll do the best we can with it."