Family demands answers after finding missing woman in Little Calumet River themselves

CHICAGO - The family of 26-year-old Ralphelle Howard is demanding answers after she went missing following an SUV crash into the Little Calumet River and three people who grew up with her later found her body themselves in less than a minute.

Family finds missing woman

The backstory:

Howard was one of five people inside a Chevrolet Trailblazer that crashed into the river Tuesday morning near 130th Street and South Indiana Avenue.

A 24-year-old man was pulled from the water and later died at a hospital. Two other women who were inside the SUV were able to swim to shore, according to Howard’s family.

Howard remained missing.

Her mother and sister, Brianna Cummings, were at the scene as crews searched for Howard. Cummings said the family was told search efforts had been paused because it was too dark.

"I feel like they stopped their search and just gave up," Cummings said.

With Howard still missing, three people who grew up with her — Kmauri Burnett, Josh and Dominique — decided to search the water themselves.

"We can’t sit around and wait for answers. Sometimes you just gotta go in," Burnett said.

Burnett said the water was deep, dark and murky. Despite not knowing how to swim, he and the others entered the water and located Howard’s body in less than a minute.

Burnett said Howard was near the SUV.

"If it was your son or daughter, night or dark, we gotta go in," Burnett said.

He questioned why Howard’s loved ones had to take matters into their own hands.

"The city, we gotta do better," Burnett said. "Shouldn’t take us, we don’t have the training to go in and rescue someone."

Cummings said finding Howard so quickly left the family with even more questions.

"She was right there where they pulled the car," Cummings said. "Y’all didn’t see her? Y'all didn’t look?"

Police said the driver lost control, hit a barrier and went into the river. The driver was cited for failure to reduce speed. The investigation remains ongoing.

What they're saying:

Howard’s family also is raising concerns about the condition of the roadway. They said a section of railing near the crash site had been broken for some time and should have been repaired.

"From my understanding the railing been broke, the railing should have been fixed by the city," Cummings said.

The family is calling for additional safety measures in the area, including more railings, barricades, lighting, and signs.

Cummings said she believes the outcome could have been different if the railing had been repaired.

"I feel like if the railing was fixed it would have just been a car crash — she would have still been here with us," Cummings said.

What's next:

FOX Chicago reached out to Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office about the family’s concerns regarding the search and the condition of the area where the crash happened. The office had not responded as of publication.