Three family members drowned in their backyard swimming pool Monday after two adults who didn’t know how to swim jumped in the water to save a struggling girl.
A neighbor heard screams and called 911.
When East Brunswick police arrived, they found 62-year-old Bharat Patel, his 33-year-old daughter-in-law Nisha Patel and her 8-year-old daughter Sacchi unresponsive in the above-ground pool, according to NBC News 4 in New York.
Officers performed CPR but were unable to resuscitate the victims, and they were pronounced dead at the scene, according to Police Lt. Frank Sutter.
Neighbors said the family had moved to the area just this past month and that this may have been one of the first times they used the pool.
The 8-year-old reportedly began to struggle in the deep end of the water that reportedly dips to 7 feet beneath the ground.
An aunt who was there called for help and then managed to reach the lifeless girl in the water.
The Middlesex County Regional Medical Examiner’s Office on Tuesday determined the deaths were by accidental drowning. Authorities also said electricity didn’t play a role in the drowning deaths despite speculation that emerged due to an electrician’s truck parked outside the house at the time.
“This is a devastating day for our entire community,” Police Chief Frank Losacco said in a statement.
The deaths remain under investigation.
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