Search suspended for man overboard in Lake Michigan Sunday

The search for a man who jumped from a freighter in Lake Michigan has been suspended.

Just before 2:00 a.m. Sunday morning, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan received a report about a man overboard approximately 3 to 4 miles offshore of Big Sable Point.

Crew members witnessed the man climb over the rail and jump from the Stewart J. Cort, a 989-foot U.S.-flagged freighter owned by the Interlake Steamship Company.

The crew members immediately deployed three life rings and notified the navigation bridge.

The team on the vessel then began a systematic search for the man.

Due to conditions at the time and the impending weather forecast, the decision was made not to use the vessel’s small workboat.

Coast Guard officials utilized a 45-foot response boat and Dolphin Helicopters to assist in the total of 11 searches.

The search covered a range of 76 square miles but the man was not found.

His name has not been released.

Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan, Coast Guard Station Manistee, Michigan, Air Facility Muskegon, Michigan, and multiple commercial vessels in the area assisted in the continuing search efforts.