Boy drowns trying to save life of sister after she fell into river

A young boy’s life was tragically cut short after he drowned while desperately trying to save his older sister who fell into a New Jersey river.

Crews searched the Pᴀssaic River Wednesday for two 10-year-olds, a boy and a girl, while an 11-year-old girl was able to get out safely. 

The boy was found ᴅᴇᴀᴅ around 11pm roughly 50 feet from Dundee Island Park where he fell in, Pᴀssaic Mayor Hector Lora told CBS News New York.

Lora added that the boy was the brother of the 11-year-old girl who was able to get out of the water and is being credited with saving her life. 

‘As he was going under, he pushed her, and she ended up by the rocks, and she climbed out,’ Lora added.

She is currently recovering from the incident. 

A third girl, the siblings’ friend, remains missing at this time.

‘We must stand strong together in support of the family because this is about the family, and right now all of our efforts, all of our resources, are concentrated on locating the little girl,’ the mayor said.

A young boy was found ᴅᴇᴀᴅ after he and two girls ended up in the Pᴀssaic River on July 29

His 11-year-old sister was able to make it out of the water and is recovering. Her safety is being credited to the boy’s efforts to push her towards nearby rocks before he drowned

Mayor Hector Lora has stated that the search for the missing third girl, 10, remains ongoing, but has transitioned from a rescue to a recovery due to the amount of time that has pᴀssed

The cause of how the children got into the water is not fully clear, but according to Lora, the river was at ‘a much higher level than what it typically would be because of the amount of rain we have received.’ 

The operation involved New Jersey State Police joined by police and firefighters from Bergen, Pᴀssaic and EsSєx counties.

Rescue boats and drones participated in the search, which was harder due to raised water levels from recent thunderstorms.

According to the Independent Online News, efforts to find the missing 10-year-old girl ended around midnight and resumed at 9am July 30 with ‘all boats and divers’ deployed back into the river.

Although ongoing, Mayor Lora said the rescue mission has now shifted into a recovery operation. 

‘We are holding out hope. Our police and fire departments are doing everything they can to locate these children,’ he added.

The Daily Mail reached out to the mayor’s office for comment.