A 20-year-old woman died and six others were left with injuries after the boat they were on capsized on Lake Michigan.
Officers from the Chicago Police Department arrived on the scene at around 3.30am on 28th July.
Four women and two men, aged between 20 and 30, were pulled from the water alive and taken to local hospitals.
Their condition was described as “good”.
Rescuers spent hours looking for missing Briana Joy Burden before darkness and waves up to one foot high forced them to call off the search.
A body was eventually recovered at around 10am.
It was identified by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office as belonging to Briana.
A post-mortem examination revealed that she had died from multiple injuries and drowning after the boat hit a “fixed object” at around 2.40am.
The Chicago Police Department believes the boat may have struck a breakwall.
Briana’s death has been ruled an accident.
A fundraiser organised by Nina Santiago says: “My name is Nina Santiago and I’m fundraising for the tragic and sudden loss of our Brianna Joy Burden.
“On July 27th, 2023 Brianna left the house to go have fun with her friends on a boat in Lake Michigan.
“At approximately 2:40 AM on July 28th, 2023 the boat was returning to dock when it struck a break wall, capsized, and all 7 people on board ended up in the water.
“6/7 of those people were accounted for and hospitalized except Brianna.
“Search efforts for Brianna were forced to stop due to the weather and she wasn’t found until later that morning.
“The funds raised through this GoFundMe will be used towards the expenses for Brianna’s funeral service and the cost of burial.
“Nobody can describe the weight this unexpected loss has put onto our family.
“Anything helps and is greatly appreciated on behalf of the entire Burden family.
“Brianna was SO loved and an indescribably beautiful soul.
“Our hearts are forever broken. We miss you so much down here BriBri. You should be here.”
