Man Drowns While Swimming At Sandy Hook Sunday Evening

HIGHLANDS, NJ — A man drowned Sunday evening while swimming off Gateway National Recreation Area - Sandy Hook, said a spokeswoman for the National Park Service.

The man was swimming off Sandy Hook at 7 p.m. Sunday, after the lifeguards went home.

He swam out to a sandbar and was unable to swim back, said park spokeswoman Daphne Yun.

She said people on the beach saw him struggling in the water and pulled him ashore. Park rangers took him to Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, but he died there Sunday night.

Sandy Hook has lifeguards on duty from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. It is advised not to swim in the water after the lifeguards have gone home.

Yun said the park service could not release the man's name until his family has been notified of his death.

Sandy Hook is operated by the National Park Service.

This is the first incident of a drowning within the actual confines of the Gateway national park so far this summer. However, in July a Carteret man died after he fell off his boat into the water at the Highlands marina. Read that story: Man Drowned In Highlands Marina (July 22)

And in April of this year, a Sussex County man fell off his boat and was found dead in the water in Sandy Hook Bay. Read that story: Man Falls Off Boat, Dies In Sandy Hook Bay (April 19)

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