On Monday night, two separate accidents left one drowned man and two women in critical conditions after a collision in Long Beach. Police officers have yet to announce the identities of the victims.
Around 6:30 p.m on Monday night, authorities received information of three men drowning at Ocean Beach Park in Long Beach waters, according to initial reports rescue officers were called immediately to the scene.
Initial reports suggest the men were swimming in the beach after lifeguards had ended their last shift and the beach had a National Weather Service notification that informed swimmers of a high rip current risk.
Two of the men survived the incident, one being able to get to the shore by himself; meanwhile the other had to be rescued by officers, and the third man was pronounced dead at the scene.
“I never witnessed something like this before, and I don’t ever want to witness it again,” said Maylan Studard a Long Beach resident that was present at the moment to CBS News.
Swimming risks
On Monday night authorities were called to rescue the drowning men as witnesses recorded an amateur video of lifeguards performing CPR techniques and transporting the victims to the nearest hospital.
Although authorities are yet to release more information, it is known the man who drowned was a 26-year old Brooklyn resident that may have been caught up in the high rip current.
“It can seem like the ocean is fine, but it changes in a second, and they went in the worst time in the water when the rip tide was bad,” said Studard to CBS News.
Other witnesses informed officials that at some point during the day, rescuers asked swimmers to get out of the water because of the risks to the water. Throughout the week there have been warnings of high currents.
As of now, the warnings remains for beaches in Brooklyn, Southern Queens, Southern Nassau and Southern Suffolk counties, since there are possibilities of upcoming storms. Authorities have advised swimmers to stay calm in the case they encounter a rip current.
The United States Lifesaving Association in partnership with NOAA’s National Weather Service and the National Sea Grant Program is currently working on an awareness campaign, so the public understands the risks of rip currents and the importance of swimming at guarded beaches.
Jet ski accident
Hours after rescuers removed the dead man from the beach another incident occurred on Long Island.
Two women were injured to gravity after the jet ski they were traveling on crashed into a bridge on Long Island around 7 p.m on Monday. According to the Nassau County police, the women were 24 and 29 years old respectively.
A pair of father and son were fishing in Long Island nearby the accident when the two women crashed, and they soon jumped into the water to rescue the victims. Police and rescuers rushed to the scene.
Authorities transported the injured women to the hospital and appeared to be in critical condition. Initial reports stated one of them went into cardiac arrest due to the harsh accident.
Authorities found the jet ski without any harm; officials will release more information on the happening as they investigate.
Source: CBS New York