Elle kim Accident, Sarina Vootkur Death – Two teenage girls killed in a boat and WaveRunner crash on Tuesday have been identified, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Marine Unit and Patrol Division responded to the crash at about 5:15 p.m. on Lake Marie, part of the Chain O’Lakes.
Investigators said a 16-year-old girl from Lake Forest, California, was driving a Yamaha WaveRunner. Elle Kim, 13, from Long Grove, Illinois, and Sarina Vootkur, 16, from Lake Forest, California, were killed in the crash.
Vootkur was driving the WaveRunner near the channel to Grass Lake when a boat operated by a 55-year-old Antioch man approached the same area, the sheriff’s office reported.
Witnesses told police the WaveRunner was traveling at high speed directly towards the boat, leading to the collision. Both girls on the WaveRunner, who were wearing life vests, were knocked unconscious and thrown into the water. The occupants of the boat immediately pulled the girls from the water, rendered aid, and called 911.
The medical examiner stated both girls died from blunt force injuries resulting from the crash. They were taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, where they later died.
It is unknown if Vootkur had her boating safety certificate, which is required in Illinois for anyone born after June 1998. This certification involves an eight-hour course and is certified by the Department of Natural Resources.
Investigators said there was no sign that either the driver of the boat or the WaveRunner was impaired. No other injuries were reported from the crash. The incident remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit and Illinois Conservation Police.