People collapse in Chicago as temperature soars over 88F (31C), cops close beach

Memorial Day’s unseasonably hot weather turned dangerous early Monday evening, forcing the closure of North Avenue Beach and sending four beach-goers to hospitals, one a young man in critical condition.

Earlier, heat exhaustion interrupted a holiday celebration in far south suburban Lockport.

In Chicago, police closed North Avenue Beach about 6 p.m., shortly after ambulances were summoned there to treat eight people who fell sick on the crowded lakefront spot, many complaining of illness related to the heat, said Larry Langford, director of the Chicago Fire Department Media Affairs.

“They started falling down and were light headed,” he said.

Firefighters responded and treated four beach-goers at the scene before taking four others to area hospitals. One, an 18-year-old man, was “found unresponsive” and he was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition, Langford said.

Temperatures in the area were recorded at about 88 degrees near the beach when eight people became ill about 5:30 p.m. It was unclear whether the eight — including the four taken to hospitals — were part of a group.

[link to www.suntimes.com]