Safety

Officials said nearly a dozen fire departments responded to Sunday's fire in the Will County village of Beecher, but by the time the flames were doused St. Paul's Lutheran Church was in ruins.

The situation began just before 1 p.m. when a 911 caller reported three people struggling in the water. They were found hanging onto a breakwall and pulled out. Roughly an hour later, crews on the beach found "unclaimed belongings" of another person, which sparked the search for the fourth swimmer.