Boy, 10, presumed dead in Long I. surf
The massive search for the 10year-old boy who vanished while swimming in the waters off Long Beach, LI, was suspended Wednesday as authorities found no sign of him, officials said.
The youngster, who is presumed dead, had been swimming unsupervised with his 11-yearold brother near Ocean Beach Park at around 6 p.m. Tuesday before the siblings became separated, according to authorities.
“Two of them apparently try to leave the water,” Long Beach Police Department spokesman Lt. Eric Cregeen told Newsday. “The 11-year-old got out, turns around and sees his brother was having trouble and was submerged.”
Nassau County emergency responders quickly alerted the Coast Guard, which immediately dispatched rescue crews by sea and air. During the multi-agency rescue effort, which included the NYPD’s Aviation Unit and Dive Unit, searchers covered more than 310 nautical miles for a total of 22 hours before its suspension, officials said.
The Coast Guard stopped the search due to the amount of time the child had been missing, the water temperature and the currents, said Capt. Kevin Reed, the commander of Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, accord- ing to Newsday. The boy and his older brother, of Hempstead, which is about 10 miles away, had taken a bus by themselves to the beach, Cregeen said.
Several beachgoers called 911 after they saw the frantic 11-yearold boy, who was taken to South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside for observation.
Officials said there were no lifeguards on duty at the time of the incident and there were “No Swimming” signs posted at the beach. The Coast Guard said in a statement Wednesday it “always urges swimmers to always remain where lifeguards are present.”
“Be aware of the current sea conditions, as well as any weather that is forecasted. The ocean is powerful and can overtake even the best swimmers.”
Sunbathers at Ocean Beach Park on Wednesday were heartbroken over the tragedy.
“The poor mother,” said Kelley Kearns, 31, a mom of two from Mineola. “My worst fear, every time I take my kids to the beach, is that one of them will drown.”
Elisheva Kaplan, 28, a mother of three, called the incident “any mother’s worst nightmare — her children swimming out into the ocean and never coming back.”
“I can’t imagine her pain,” Kaplan said. “I know I’ll give my kids an extra hug when I put them to bed tonight.”