Man, 70, critically injured in boat crash at Chain O’ Lakes State Park

A 70-year-old man was critically injured when he was thrown from a boat Friday evening at Chain O’ Lakes State Park in north suburban Antioch.

Marine unit officers responded about 5:40 p.m. to a report of an unresponsive male at Barnacle Bob’s Boat Rentals at 42125 N. 4th Ave., which is on Lake Marie, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

When officers arrived, the man had already been pulled from the water, the sheriff’s office said. The man, who lives in Antioch, was then taken in critical condition to St. Catherine’s Medical Center in Prairie, Wisconsin.

An investigation revealed that the man and two of his friends were on the front of his Crestliner fishing boat when a wave or wake crashed into it, causing him to fall into the water, the sheriff’s office said.

A witness on another boat saw the man struggling in the water and pulled him out before administering CPR, the sheriff’s office said.