Fernald William Posselt died attempting to save Bernice L. and Dorothy M. Strand from drowning, Chicago, Illinois, August 19, 1934. While tossing a ball from one to another, Dorothy, 21; Bernice, 23; Posselt, 24, drayman; and another man, who could swim, waded 75 feet from the shore of Lake Michigan and at times jumped waves three feet high. While the other young man was wading toward shore to recover the ball, Dorothy tried to wade three feet to Bernice but was affected by a strong undertow. Bernice grasped Dorothy’s hand, and both tried to wade toward shore but were momentarily submerged by waves. Posselt, who was standing on bottom, swam three feet to Bernice, grasped her hand, and tried to wade toward shore but made no headway. The three were briefly submerged by waves, and Posselt then tried to swim toward shore. Dorothy and Bernice stood on bottom. Posselt made no progress, and the three drifted into deeper water 100 feet from shore, Dorothy and Bernice being beyond their depth. A lifeguard in a boat 50 feet away started to row toward them. Before he could reach them, they were submerged by a wave and rose six feet apart. The lifeguard dived and swam to Dorothy and, supporting her, swam to wadable water. About the time the lifeguard reached Dorothy, Posselt sank and drowned. The lifeguard later swam to Bernice and took her to wadable water.
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