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Update: Body Of 15-Year-Old Drowning Victim Recovered In Passaic County Reservoir

UPDATE: The body of a 15-year-old boy from Paterson who drowned in a Passaic County reservoir while swimming with friends was recovered Sunday morning, authorities said.

File photo

File photo

Photo Credit: Ron Bombaro (tornadochaser66)

"We've notified the family," Woodland Park Mayor Keith Kazmark said after members of the Passaic County sheriff's Search & Recovery SCUBA Team found the body shortly before 10:30 a.m.

It was in the area of the Great Notch Reservoir off Old Rifle Camp Road on Garrett Mountain in Woodland Park where his friends had seen him go under -- about 15 to 20 feet from shore -- around 3:45 p.m. Saturday, the mayor said.

Temperatures had reached 90 degrees when Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik's Search & Recovery SCUBA Team responded along with local police and firefighters, a State Police helicopter, and members of the county prosecutor's and emergency management offices.

Colleagues from Paterson, Passaic, Totowa, Wayne, Clifton and Hawthorne also responded.

Several initially waded into the water with rope lines before inflatable boats were brought in.

Because there's no lighting in the wooded area around the reservoir, the search was suspended shortly before 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

Searchers were back on the water by 9 a.m. on Sunday and made the discovery less than an hour later, the mayor said.

The boy's identity was being withheld out of respect for his family.

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