Just days into the new school year, a north suburban high school is mourning a student who drowned Wednesday night at a beach in Evanston. It's a reminder never to swim in Lake Michigan when the water has been declared off-limits, especially at night.

"Yesterday, all day, it was little high anxiety knowing that there's winds, there's waves, there's dangerous currents. A lot of beaches don't have lifeguards on duty," said Dave Benjamin co-founder of the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project.

Waves always give Benjamin reason to worry.

"So far this year, there's been 31 drownings in Lake Michigan," he said.

His non-profit works to prevent drownings like the one that happened at Evanston's Lighthouse Beach on Wednesday night.

According to the Evanston Fire Department, a 17-year-old boy was pulled out of the water just before 9 p.m. at Lighthouse Beach, the northernmost beach in Evanston located near the mouth of Central Street.

"On arrival, there was probably three-to-five-foot waves coming in," said Evanston Fire Department Battalion Chief Tim Migon.

Dangerous waves closed the beach to swimming – but Evanston firefighters said several teens were in the water. One of them did not resurface.

"It's definitely not recommended. There's no lifeguards on duty. It's after hours. There's no lights. Nobody's seeing each other. The kids were out there. Nobody had a buddy with them, and they just lost one of their friends, and they searched for him, and they ended up calling us, 911," Migon said.

Rescue crews launched two boats, a drone, and eventually a U.S. Coast Huard helicopter.

About 35 minutes after the 911 call, crews found 17-year-old Sameer Quadri and pulled him out of relatively shallow water 40 yards south of the break wall. He later died at the hospital.

Quadri was a senior at Niles North High School, school officials confirmed Thursday morning. The school's website lists him as a player on the varsity basketball team.

The school was offering grief support and counseling to students and staff. Students can visit the school's Skyloft for support.

"It's tragic," Benjamin said.

On Thursday, Lighthouse Beach remained closed to swimming due to dangerous wave conditions.