Water activities, such as swimming, surfing, and many others, are especially popular during the hot summer months. On Friday morning, the Sylvania Avenue beach was crowded, and a family from Teaneck, New Jersey, was having a fun day at the beach. A rip current is a strong, channeled rush of water moving away from shore, and it turned a relaxing swim into a nightmare for a 39-year-old father when he saw his teenage daughter get caught in one. But then things became much worse, and the father hurried to the ocean, where he tragically perished by drowning.

When New Jersey 101.5 shared the heartbreaking news of the father’s death on their official social media site, the story quickly went viral. Internet users flooded the comment section to express their sorrow over the tragedy.

Self-rescue operation turns into a horror scene

Authorities investigating this incident have not yet released the names of the father and the daughter. On Friday morning, around 8:35, a sizable crowd gathered at the beach on Sylvania Avenue. While the father (age 39) was relaxing at the beach, his daughter (15) was swimming offshore. The teen girl, however, came into trouble when she was swept away by the torrents. Following this, the 39-year-old raced toward the ocean in order to save his daughter. However, authorities reportedly said that he was swept beneath the waters while attempting to save her.

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Avon-by-the- Sea law enforcement and lifeguards, together with the ANSWER (Area Network of Shore Water Emergency Responders) team, the State Police Marine Unit, and the U.S. Coast Guard, undertook a massive search. The police and the water rescue squad unit used everything at their disposal, including jet skis, to track the missing guy. A medical examiner at Jersey Shore University Medical Center declared him dead despite CPR from emergency personnel. The youngster, however, was saved by the rescuers and sent to the same hospital.

In addition to previous warnings, this event occurred while no lifeguards were on duty at the beach. The internet, however, went crazy as this catastrophe unfolded.

Netizens upset over this swimming tragedy

The news of a person dying while attempting to save another person saddened the internet community as it spread. A horde of individuals descended on the comments section to express their grief and opinions over the man’s passing.

Even thinking of this tragedy made people shiver, as this comment read, “Geeze, that’s awful. Prayers to the family.” With grief, a suggestion was shared by this user, as they say, “Very sad….people just dont realize the power of the ocean….swimming without lifeguards is a bad idea especially if you’re not a very strong swimmer or comfortable in ocean conditions. May he rest in peace.”

A painful message was shared, as this comment read, “I’ve said this before when I saw a story like this, but if you don’t know what you’re doing you’re just creating another person to save for the rescuers…” Another comment read, “Condolences to the family.”

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