The incident took place around 6:45 p.m. Monday when Yonkers Police responded to the JFK Marina off Warburton Avenue on a report a stranded personal watercraft with a male and female missing, said Det. Sgt. Dean Politopoulos.
Members of the Westchester County Department of Public Safety Marine Unit and Aviation Unit provided support services. Empress Ambulance services were also dispatched.
The female passenger of the watercraft was located on an unoccupied vessel moored at a local boat club; she was rescued and transported to a local area hospital for medical evaluation suffering no life-threatening injuries.
The male, Darel Reyes-Sanchez of the Bronx, was subsequently located by the Marine Unit floating in the water unconscious, Politopoulos said. Reyes-Sanchez was then taken aboard and officers immediately began CPR. He was transported to a local area hospital where he was ultimately pronounced dead.
A preliminary investigation has found that Reyes-Sanchez and the unidentified 23-year-old female owned the personal watercraft. The vehicle was launched at the JFK Marina boat launch and they proceeded in the Hudson River.
It is undetermined at this time how both victims ended up in the river, however, the female was able to float and make her way towards the shoreline where she lost sight of the male – it is believed both were not swimmers., police said.
It appears that the male ingested a large quantity of water and drowned, police said Both victims were wearing personal floatation devices, however, they were inappropriately sized for their bodies and appeared to be children’s vests, according to police.
"The Yonkers Police Department and local authorities are continuing to investigate this incident, and extends its deepest sympathies to the family of the victim," Politopoulos said.
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