4 Rescued From Water In One Evening At Jacob Riis Park Beach
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Police and fire crews had to rescue four people from the water at Jacob Riis Park beach in the Rockaways Monday evening.
As CBS2's Valerie Castro reported, the incidents happened within hours of each other at the same beach. Four people were pulled from the water, and two remained in critical condition late Monday, after nearly drowning.
Emergency teams from the FDNY rushed one of two girls off the beach at Jacob Riis State Park after they nearly drowned in the rough waters around 8:30 p.m.
One of the girls was taken to Mount Sinai Roosevelt Hospital in critical condition, the other to St. John's Episcopal Hospital in serious, but stable, condition, officials said.
The victims were quickly put on a waiting NYPD helicopter to be rushed to a nearby hospital.
Daniel Martinez witnessed the rescue efforts.
"They don't respond. They gave them they CPR, and they said nothing, so they take them in the helicopter," Martinez said.
Martinez also took cellphone video of a helicopter on the beach involved with the rescue and near-drowning of a 62-year-old woman just after 6:30 p.m. at the same beach.
"When the guys took her out of the water, she was unconscious," Martinez said.
The woman was rushed to Staten Island University Hospital and was reported in critical condition, officials said.
The rescues came after a weekend that claimed the lives of two men on Long Island who also drowned. One of those men was caught in a rip current on Long Beach Saturday afternoon.
Rip currents over the weekend led to more than 100 people needing help at Long Beach.
If you are caught in a rip current, do not panic, and try to swim parallel to the shore until you can head toward the beach, experts advise. Also, experts advise never to swim unless lifeguards are on duty.
It was unclear whether the Monday night incidents were the result of rip currents.