A 10-year-old boy died in New Jersey’s Passaic River while trying to save his sister – as divers continue to search for another child who remains missing in the water.
The boy, his sister, 11, and their female pal, 10, went into the water near Pulaski Park just after 6:20 p.m. Wednesday – but he got into difficulty and his body was recovered just over three hours later, WABC reported.
He was found around 50 feet from where he entered the river, Passaic Mayor Hector Lora told reporters.
The boy’s sister managed to clamber out of the water and was reunited with her parents. Lora suggested her younger sibling helped her get to safety.
“In conversing with her, her account, the little boy may have saved her life,” Lora said. “As he was going under, he pushed her and she ended up by the rocks, and she climbed out.”
The siblings’ pal remains missing early Thursday – despite the best efforts of a Good Samaritan who jumped into the water.
The man couldn’t bring the two kids to safety because of the river’s currents.
“I ask that you continue to pray for the families and to hold them up in your thoughts because they are in need of your support,” Lora said on social media.
The Passaic Fire Department is leading the search, but boats and scuba dive teams from the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office have also been deployed.
The search has been complicated by darkness and high water levels due to storms – and is being described as a recovery mission.
Earlier on Wednesday, Paterson cops warned the river level was high.
“River levels are expected to crest today before gradually beginning to recede, but flooded roadways and fast-moving water remain dangerous,” Paterson Police said on X.
“I will tell you that this river constantly overflows, and this whole area is a flood zone,” Lian Rodriguez, a witness, told News 12.
“You would think there would be barriers in place. I have never seen so much attention from police. This hits close to home.”
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