Police: Man Dies Off Seaside Heights, Rough Waves May Have Broken His Neck
JERSEY SHORE, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — Authorities say a man died in an apparent drowning while swimming in rough water off a beach at the New Jersey shore.
Officers in Seaside Heights responded shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday to a report of a man struck by a wave and floating in the ocean.
Strong rip currents affected recovery efforts. Police were joined by water rescue units and the man was brought to shore.
Emergency responders began CPR efforts but the 44-year-old New Brunswick resident was pronounced dead at the scene. His name wasn't immediately released.
Police Chief Tommy Boyd told the Asbury Park Press that the wave may have broken the man's neck and left him incapacitated. Officials said lifeguards weren't on duty at the time.
The news comes as authorities up the coast at New York's Rockaway Beach continued their search for a missing 17-year-old swimmer believed to have drown after rip currents dragged him under on Saturday.
Hurricane Florence, which quickly downgraded as a storm after making landfall, was predicted to cause dangerous rip currents as it approached the East Coast.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)