A 28-Year-Old Man Loses His Life to a Rip Current at the Beach in Ocean County

According to officials, a 28-year-old male from Forked River perished after becoming entangled in a rip current off a beach near Ship Bottom.

At at 2:28 p.m. on June 5, emergency personnel were dispatched to East 21st Street in response to a report of four individuals trapped in a rip current. Surf City Fire and EMS, the Ship Bottom Police Department, and the Ship Bottom Fire Department all participated in the response.

Four people were caught in a rip current on East 21st Street on June 5 at around 2:28 p.m., prompting the Ship Bottom Police Department, Ship Bottom Fire Department, Surf City Fire, and emergency services to attend.

Three of the four had already emerged from the water and were on land when they arrived. David Maldonado-Ocelotl, 28, of Forked River, was still unaccounted for in the surf.Maldonado-Ocelotl was unconscious and not breathing when firefighters and local surfers found him in the ocean.

He was taken to Southern Ocean Medical Center, where he was later declared deceased, after life-saving procedures were started right away, according to the police. The family and loved ones of Maldonado-Ocelotl received condolences from the Ship Bottom Police Department.