Families gather to grieve loss of Daniel Persaud and Ryan Wong, who drowned in Jamaica Bay
NEW YORK -- A vigil was held Monday night to honor the life of a 13-year-old Queens teenager who drowned alongside a friend on Friday.
CBS2's Alice Gainer has more from Broad Channel section of Queens.
Messages were written on balloons that were released.
"Daniel, fly high, baby. I'm gonna miss you," one read.
Candles were lit and flowers were placed into the same water that claimed the life of Daniel Persaud and his best friend, Ryan Wong.
READ MORE: 13-year-old Daniel Persaud, who drowned in Jamaica Bay on Friday, remembered as "One amazing kid"
The 13-year-old boys drowned in Jamaica Bay just before noon on Friday. Police say they were standing on a sand bar and became submerged in the water.
A classmate named Jayden was a friend to both Daniel and Ryan.
"Play basketball, and that's all I think about are the good memories," Jayden said of Daniel. "[Ryan] wanted to ride bikes, learn how to ride bikes."
CBS2 was told the boys skipped school to go to the beach. About 12 percent of students were absent from MS 137 on Friday. The school's policy is to send out two robocalls to parents -- one at 10:30 a.m. and one at 7 p.m. Voicemails are left if no one picks up.
Daniel Persaud's father, who said his son could swim a little bit, insisted he didn't receive a call until 7 p.m.
"If they called me that morning at 10-11, I could've saved him because I could track on his phone. If they'd call me, I would've looked and seen exactly where he was at. I would've called him," Rickey Persaud said.
Daniel Persaud's grandfather said he was a good kid and had never made a mistake before, but he called this a mistake one that cost him his life," Gainer reported.
"Many of us do make mistakes and we get a second chance to correct ourselves. He did not. First time he made a mistake and he paid it with his life. God did not give him a second chance," Jade Shwar said.
He calls Daniel, the third of four children, a blessing and a good kid who was always smiling.
"He loved the computer. He made his own game on the computer," Shwar said.
Wong's heartbroken family told CBS2 earlier that he loved video games.
"He was like the face of our heart. Being snatched like that, at a young age, it's hard to even swallow that," said Ramona Shiwmangal, Wong's aunt.
Looking out at all of the support on Monday night, Daniel's father said he hopes parents attending the vigil won't ever have to go through something like this.
"Teach your kid better, not to do any mistake like this in the future," Rickey Persaud said.
CBS2 was told a robocall was made to the families of both students at 10:30 a.m. and received.