A celebrated hairstylist died after falling off a yacht in Lake Michigan, leaving her loved ones heartbroken as they grapple with her untimely death.
Zahrie Walls, 27, was boating with her friends near Navy Pier in Chicago when she toppled from the vessel into the water at around 5:30pm on Saturday.
She was unresponsive when she was pulled from the lake and first responders rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she was tragically pronounced dead.
Police are still investigating her death. It remains unclear how the beloved stylist fell off the boat, but her mother believes the lake’s strong currents made her lose her grounding.
‘Anybody can lose a battle with Lake Michigan,’ Kizzy Wells, Walls’ mother, told the Chicago Sun Times. ‘Those currents don’t play fair.’
A friend, who rented the boat, invited Walls to come with her and spend the day in the sun, Wells said.
‘I felt in my heart that something wasn’t right,’ she told the outlet, recalling the moment her daughter’s friend called her and said Walls was going to the hospital.
Chicago Fire Department’s Jason Lach revealed to the Chicago Tribune their rescue team had to respond to at least two dozen water-related calls over the weekend, which included pulling people from the water and putting out boat fires.
Other than Walls, Lach said at least two other people died in the water.
The devastated mom described Walls as a hard worker and provider whose ‘whole focus was to take care of her family.’
The Chicago-based hairdresser and owner of Z Style Suites was known for her clientele of celebrities and influencers.
With more than 76,000 Instagram followers, Walls’ page is flooded with her patrons’ glamorous end results after she styled their hair.
Her mother revealed Walls’ love for hair started while she was in high school, when she would practice on her best friend, Kenneka Jenkins.
Jenkins horrifically passed away at 19 years old in 2017. Her body was found in a freezer at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
Since Walls’ sudden death, Instagram and Facebook have been flooded with tear-jerking tributes to her.
‘I woke up to this and couldn’t help but [wonder] why you, you will be missed truly,’ one woman wrote.
‘I love you forever my sister one of the greatest friends I’ve ever had in my life I’m so sorry,’ another said.
‘I love you so much princess I’m so so confused and hurt…I’m crying I’m saddened so many emotions it’s hard to focus.’
On Sunday, dozens of people crowded around Walls’ salon for a balloon releasing ceremony to honor her life and achievements.
‘I knew she was special when I first gave birth to her,’ Wells said through her tears at the event.
‘I was only 19 years old, and I didn’t want my baby to struggle like I did. I supported her in every way.’
Video shows guests holding yellow, gold and white balloons before letting them go up into the sky.
Walls died during Black Yacht Weekend, an annual ‘celebration of community, culture, and connection’ in Lake Michigan, according to the event’s website.
In a Sunday statement addressing the fatal incident, organizers said Walls was not connected to the event or in its area when she fell into the water.