The surface of the water appeared deceptively calm, drawing three children, none of them older than 11, closer to the edge of the rain-swollen Passaic River in New Jersey.
Too close.
The children were standing on a concrete boat launch ramp on the riverbank in Passaic, N.J., about a dozen miles west of Manhattan, on Wednesday night when they appeared to lose their footing, the city’s mayor, Hector C. Lora, said. Two of them were swept away in what Mr. Lora described as a strong undercurrent, prompting an intense search that continued on Friday.
The body of one of the children, a 10-year-old boy, was discovered several hours after they went into the water on Wednesday night. A girl the same age, who was also believed to have drowned, was still missing as of Friday afternoon, Mr. Lora said in an interview.
The third child, the 11-year-old sister of the boy who died, was rescued from the water’s edge, after she appeared to have been inadvertently shoved back toward the shoreline by her brother, the mayor said.
“He may have unintentionally saved her life,” said Mr. Lora, who has met with the families of the children, including the girl who survived. “She’s obviously distraught,” he said, “concerned for her brother and the other little girl.”
After nearly two days of searching a nine-mile stretch of the river from Passaic to Newark, divers were combing an area not far downriver from the ramp on Friday. They were focusing their search on locations pinpointed by cadaver dogs and where objects appeared on sonar, according to Mr. Lora, who said that emergency responders had earlier chased some false leads that turned up a log and other objects. The boat launch is part of Dundee Island Park, which includes a playground, soccer fields and walking paths.
“It becomes even more difficult for the family,” Mr. Lora said. “They really need some kind of resolution or answers.”
“Our pain pales in comparison to the pain that they’re feeling,” he added.
A memorial for the boy was set up on a bridge just downstream from where the children were swept into the river, and where divers focused their search on Friday.
The names of the boy who died and the girl who remains missing were not released by the authorities, who said that all three children were from Garfield, N.J., which is across the river from Passaic.
In a statement on social media, Everett E. Garnto Jr., the mayor of Garfield, asked people to pray for the families of the children.
“Our hearts are with them during this incredibly difficult time,” he wrote.
Mr. Lora said that heavy rain early in the week caused the river to swell, and that the water was about 15 feet deep at the time that the children were overtaken by the current. He said that a man entered the water to try to save them, but that it was too late — the water was up to the man’s chest.
For those involved in the search, Mr. Lora said, it has been difficult emotionally.
“These divers, these firefighters and police, they’re also parents,” he said.
The post Divers Search a New Jersey River for Second of 2 Children They Fear Drowned appeared first on New York Times.
