Officers, Good Samaritans Rescue Sisters, Mother At Long Island Beach
MASTIC BEACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Two sisters caught in riptide currents and their terrified mother were rescued at a Long Island beach over the weekend.
A man flagged down two Suffolk County Marine Bureau Officers around 8 p.m. Sunday and told them he heard screaming in the water near Mastic Beach.
Officers Chris DeFeo and Ray Harkins got to the scene and spotted two girls struggling to stay afloat about 75 to 100 yards off shore. Now the mother and daughters are thanking their hero, CBS2'S Carolyn Gusoff reports.
"You don't know what to do," said 15-year-old survivor Adreina Collado. "All I was thinking about was my little sister."
Her sister Jairianny Collado, 11, also survived the ordeal.
"You try to swim but its pulling you back in," Jairianny said.
"They were flailing their arms, bobbing up and down, barely keeping their heads above the surface," DeFeo told 1010 WINS.
A relative, who was already in the water by the time officers arrived, swam out and rescued 15-year-old Adreina Collado, while DeFeo jumped in the water to pull out her 11-year-old sister, Jairiamy.
"I entered the water and didn't really think twice about it...This is what I do, this is why I'm a police officer," DeFeo said.
As the girls were being brought to safety, their 42-year-old mother ran into the water and was apparently overcome, police said. She passed out and another beachgoer pulled her out of the water.
All three victims were taken to Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center where they were treated and released.
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