Two kayakers who went missing Saturday night, Aug. 1, in Lake Michigan near Washington Island were found dead Aug. 3, according to a joint news release from the Washington Island Police Department and Door County Sheriff’s Office.
Recovery crews located the bodies of David Thalman, 20, of Dundee, Illinois, and Franceska Warick, 20, of South Elgin, Illinois, at 10:55 a.m. Aug. 3 and recovered them from the water.
Washington Island police were dispatched at 6:48 p.m. Aug. 1 to the area of Wickman Drive following a report that two individuals who went out on kayaks, without life jackets, had not returned. Officers initiated a water search, that included drone assistance, in collaboration with local fire departments, according to a department news release posted on Facebook.
On Aug. 2, the Door County Sheriff’s Office assumed command of the incident as the operation transitioned from a search effort to a recovery operation in the area where the kayakers were last seen.
The Door County Sheriff’s Office will continue to investigate the deaths.
The U.S. Coast Guard was involved in water and ground searches Saturday night and early in the morning on Sunday, Aug. 2, but suspended its operations around 10:45 a.m. Sunday.
The Washington Island Fire Department continued search operations with assistance from the Egg Harbor Fire Department, Ephraim Fire Department, Sister Bay/Liberty Grove Fire Department, Gibraltar K-9 Search Team, Jacksonport Fire Department, Gibraltar Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Door County Sheriff’s Office and Door County Emergency Management.
At least 17 boat-related fatalities have occurred in Wisconsin this year, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources annual crash report. Eight recorded deaths happened in July, which is up from four in 2025 and seven in 2024; six of the eight fatalities stemmed from two boating accidents – one in Lake Geneva and the other in Lake Pepin.
It’s been confirmed that victims were not wearing life jackets in at least seven of the boat-related drownings so far this year, up three since previous reporting on the uptick in the number of fatal boat-related accidents in June.
The Aug. 1 incident comes about a month and half after a Pewaukee teen died from drowning in Okauchee Lake.
Donnisa Edmonds contributed to this report.
Adrienne Davis is a general assignment and breaking news reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Got any tips or stories to share? Contact Adrienne at amdavis@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @AdriReportss.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 2 missing kayakers found dead near Washington Island
Reporting by Adrienne Davis, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Adrienne Davis, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
