News Release

NPS Dive Team recovers body of teenage boy from Delaware River

Date: July 24, 2022
Contact: Kathleen Sandt, Public Affairs Specialist, 570-234-9144

BUSHKILL, PA- Members of the National Park Service dive team at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area recovered the body of a teenage boy from the Delaware River at around 3:30 this afternoon.  The boy, from Elizabeth, NJ, was swimming at the Ames- Jennings site- a small picnic area on the New Jersey side of the park- when family members saw him go under the water.  The emergency call came in at around 2:15 pm.  Also responding to the search and recovery operation were emergency services providers and officers from Blue Ridge Rescue Squad, Sandyston Township Volunteer Fire Department, Bushkill Volunteer Fire Department.  Bushkill EMS, NJ State Police, and Sussex County. 

This is the second drowning in the park this year.  Neither victim was wearing a lifejacket.  Both were swimming in the river.  “Our hearts and our deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends of the victims of these tragic incidents,” said Dustin Gunderson, dive team leader.  “We can’t say it enough:  wearing a properly fitted and fastened life jacket is the number one way that folks can keep themselves safe while swimming in the Delaware River,” he added.  

Out of 103 drownings in the park since 1971, 64% were related to swimming and none of the victims were wearing a properly fitted and fastened lifejacket at the time of their death.  Twenty-four percent of all drownings have occurred during the last 2 weeks of July when temperatures and visitation are both high.     

The Delaware River has a swift current and an uneven bottom making it easy for one to suddenly get in over their heads and get caught in the swift current below the surface.  In addition to wearing a life jacket, park rangers and emergency service providers suggest that those seeking a break from the heat near the river stay near shore in shallower water; avoid swimming near rapids; swim at lifeguarded beaches; and always assign someone to keep an eye on everyone in your party who is in the water, especially children.  The NPS provides free “loaner” lifejackets for children to use while swimming at Milford, Smithfield, and Turtle Beaches.