2 teenagers die while swimming at New York's Coney Island Beach, police say

FILE- Children play in the sand while others jog as... — FILE- Children play in the sand while others jog as a New York City Parks officer, center, walks the beach making sure no one goes in the water, at Coney Island Beach during the current coronavirus outbreak, on May 24, 2020, in New York. Police in New York said two teenagers died while swimming at Coney Island Beach in Brooklyn, a news report said. Credit: AP/Kathy Willens

By The Associated PressUpdated July 6, 2024

Two teenagers died while swimming at New York's Coney Island Beach in Brooklyn, police said.

Police received an emergency call for a water rescue in the area of Stillwell Avenue and Boardwalk West at 8:10 p.m. Friday, the New York Police Department said in a statement.

Arriving officers were informed two females, aged 17 and 18, had gone into the water and disappared from view, police said.

Police from the department's aviation, harbor, scuba units conducted a search. Divers eventually removed both the young women from the water, police said.

The swimmers were transported to NYC Health and Hospitals/Coney Island where they were pronounced dead, according to police, who said the investigation continues.

Witnesses told WABC-TV that a rain storm began and most people at the beach took shelter, but the two young women went into the rough ocean water.