Chicago surgeon drowns saving 2 children

A well-regarded pediatric surgeon from Chicago vacationing at Lake Michigan drowned after helping two children struggling in the lake waters. Dr. Donald Liu, who practiced at the University of Chicago Hospitals, was pulled underwater Sunday morning off Cherry Beach in Berrien County, Michigan, the Chicago Tribune reported. Liu, his wife and three children were on vacation in Chikaming Township, about 90 miles from Chicago. The 50-year-old doctor was successful in saving the children, who were caught in heavy surf. However, he went under before rescue crews could arrive. A dispatch supervisor for Berrien Country, Jeff Thornton, said Liu may have been caught in a rip current. The drowning death of a 41-year-old man in the same lake a few hours later was attributed on rip currents. That man's body was recovered 350 yards off Tiscornia Beach by the Coast Guard, Thornton said. Liu had worked at the hospital for about 10 years and recently received a "distinguished clinician" award.