Results tagged “waterrescue”

A Queens man trying to rescue his wife and daughter became the latest victim to drown in the Rockaways this summer. 36-year-old father of two Jose-Luis Olivares of Ozone Park became the sixth person to fall prey to the rough tides along the Queens beaches, the second to die at Jacob Riis Park. Olivares went into the water after his wife and ten-year-old daughter around 7 p.m.—an hour after life guards go off-duty. An off-duty park ranger pulled Olivares out and he was airlifted to Peninsula Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Both his wife and daughter survived; it was unclear how they managed to get out of the water. The victim's brother told the Post, "We're all feeling very bad right now because he was a hero today. He saved his daughter and his wife. He is a very good father — he loves his daughter. She is devastated." Parks officials continue to search for the body of Heyward "Winky" Patterson, who was pulled in while swimming late at night on a nearby beach earlier in the week.

Who said there were no fireworks on the East River last night? A family who had taken a holiday cruise down to the Statue of Liberty ended up in danger of almost capsizing as dusk approached yesterday evening. The Delorbe family had headed down for lunch on the Jersey side of the Hudson and were making their way back home to City Island when they hit a rough patch and water began entering their 15-foot jetboat near East 34th Street. Luckily for them, their state of peril was quickly spotted by a nearby water taxi named "Frank Sinatra" who put out a mayday call that was promptly responded to by an FDNY rescue boat. The four adults and three young children were pulled out just after 7 p.m. The rescuing captain told the News, "It was the right place at the right time. If we didn't get to them, they would have gone under."

Earlier this afternoon, two kayakers required some extra help when they got too close to the temporary NYC Waterfalls near the Brooklyn Bridge. Harbor and aviation units were on the scene to help them out--there was even a request to shut down the waterfall. The two people were rescued and the waterfalls continue to flow. Less dicey ways to see the falls include walking on the Brooklyn promenade, taking a boat cruise, or while biking around town.