HURON, Ohio — Four men are believed to have drowned Wednesday after they waded into 5-foot waves crashing on a Lake Erie beach to help a swimmer struggling to stay afloat, a fire official said.

        Firefighters rescued the woman, who was not identified. The Coast Guard and dive teams called off the search for the four men, believed to be between 18 and 30 years old, about five hours after the woman was reported missing off Nickel Plate beach.

        “We hope there's some miracle that they swam ashore someplace, but we doubt it,” Huron Fire Chief John Zimmerman said.

        The search will resume at 7 a.m. today. The names of the swimmers will not be released until family members are notified, fire officials said.

        The half-mile-long public beach, which had no lifeguards, had been closed for swimming since Wednesday morning because of rough waters, but people were allowed to sunbathe and picnic, City Manager Mike Tann said. The beach is closed for swimming two or three times during most summers because of strong winds, he said.

        “I don't know how much clearer you can make it,” he said of the announcement concerning limited activities on the beach.

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