Swimmer In Distress Rescued From Long Island Sound: Police

SHOREHAM, NY — A woman was rescued from the Long Island Sound off Shoreham Beach Sunday, police said.

According to Suffolk County Police, the incident took place at 6:50 a.m. in Shoreham when a woman called 911 to report that her friend Johanna Scheiber, 21, of Sayville, was swimming in the Sound, but she'd lost sight of her from the beach.

(Video courtesy Suffolk County Police)

Suffolk County Marine Bureau Officer Gregory Stroh, Seventh Precinct police officers, and members of the aviation section responded; Seventh Precinct officers interviewed the caller and directed the police helicopter to the search area, police said.

Aviation Section Sergeant John Vahey, Officer David Rosante and Stony Brook University Hospital flight paramedic Chris Barnes, who were in the police helicopter, located Scheiber, who was in distress, in the water approximately a mile offshore, police said.

Barnes and Rosante dropped floatation devices from the helicopter to her, police said.

Members of the Wading River Fire Department responded on a boat and transported Scheiber to shore; she was transported to a local hospital for evaluation, police said.