In Memory

Dennis Kallas

 

From Dixon Evening Telegraph: (Denny’s Obituary) Dennis Christ Kallas, 46, of Dixon, died Friday, May 19, 1995. He was born on July 17, 1948 in Dixon to Violet (Giannetto) and Christ Kallas. He was a graduate of Dixon High School and a veteran of the U. S. Army. . . . He was preceded in death by his father. Survivors include two daughters, Jennifer and Diona Kallas; his mother Violet (Glenn) Kastener; fourteen brothers and sisters. . . . (May 21, 1995) One man may have drowned Friday evening when the boat he was riding in tipped over in the Rock River. Two other men swam to safety. The accident happened as the Rock River banks in downtown Dixon were full of people fishing and enjoying the spring weather, with Page Park full of ball players and spectators. . . . “The water level on the boat was only six inches from the top,” Jeff Rumph told the Telegraph. “The engine was chugging hard, and I knew they were going to have trouble . . . . “ The boat went under the Peoria Avenue Bridge, moving slowly, Rumph said. Then, not 10 minutes later, the men had fallen in the water and were being pulled downstream . . . . The third man was in the middle of the river, floating about four feet from a bobbing cooler, Rumph said. “It looked like he was unconscious to me.” . . . . “He yelled ‘Help,’“ Weimer said. “I told him to keep his head up and watch the pylons (of the old railroad bridge).” The man was wearing a life vest. . . . “He wasn’t 50 feet from me when he went down,” one of the fireman [sic] said later. The rescue boat circled the area where the man went under, but the firemen could not locate him. . . . (May 25, 1995) Dixon City Fire Chief Jim Hill said two firemen were operating a patrol boat on the river, checking the shoreline for Kallas’ body Wednesday . . . . as the boat approached the area of the old Rock River Ready Mix plant, the firemen observed Kallas’ body in the middle of the river. . . . Illinois Conservation Officers have ticketed Steve McCombs . . . for operating a motor boat under the influence, failing to have sufficient personal floatation devices and overloading a water craft . . . . (June 6, 1995) A June 16 court date has been set for a Dixon man charged by Lee County State’s Attorney Dan Fish with two felony counts and two misdemeanor counts in connection with the May 19 drowning death of Dennis C. Kallas of Dixon. Fish filed the charges Monday against Steven McCombs, 33. . . . The charges include operating a water vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, and operating a water craft with breath alcohol concentration in excess of .10. . . .