At least 14 dead in boating, swimming incidents over Labor Day weekend across the US
A New York couple died over the holiday weekend after their 27-foot-boat struck a large fishing vessel in the state's coastal waters of Great South Bay.
The crash, which was reported by the Suffolk County Police Department, took place Sunday about 10:40 p.m local time and killed Louis and Renee Deritis, a husband and wife from Oakdale, a hamlet on Long Island.
The couple are among at least 14 people who died in boating or swimming incidents around the United States over the Labor Day holiday weekend. In New Jersey, a swimmer who disappeared in coastal waters remained missing on Tuesday.
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Long Island, New York boat crash
In New York, the 1989 OC/MA boat, driven by 53-year-old Louis Deritis, collided with a 1989 44-foot Henriques Sport Fisherman.
Police reported the crash, which took place south of Long Island just north of Fire Island, caused the boat to capsize, ejecting Deritis into the water. His body was later located by Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau officers and the United States Coast Guard.
His wife was found in the vessel’s cabin by fire department rescue divers, police reported. The 50-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene by the Office of the Suffolk County Medical Examiner.
Four people aboard the fishing boat, including its operator, Ferdinand Caravousanos, 61, of West Babylon were not injured.
Both vessels were impounded for safety checks police said, and the cause of the crash remained under investigation Tuesday.
1 dead, 1 missing, several rescues on Jersey Shore
In New Jersey, police in Seaside Park and Belmore rescued "more than a dozen bathers from rough waters due to dangerous currents" over the weekend, according to the Asbury Park Press, part of the USA TODAY Network.
A 22-year old man died in Beach Haven on Sunday after being pulled into a rip current along with two other people, who were rescued, CNN reported. Beach Haven police could not immediately be reached for comment.
As of Monday afternoon, crews were reportedly still searching for a man who'd gone missing in the waters off Seaside Park, a borough in Ocean County.
Stephen Houser, 35, was at Long Beach Island on Sunday when he saw a group of people get swept out into the water and "jumped into action" to help rescue a distressed swimmer.
Missing swimmer found dead in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
Just south in Delaware, the body of a missing Maryland man who disappeared over the weekend washed ashore Monday, per Delaware Online, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Richard Boateng, 31, of Savage, went missing just after 5:45 p.m. Sunday in the surf off the beach near Rehoboth Avenue, the Rehoboth Beach Police Department reported.
Crews with the U.S. Coast Guard, Delaware State Police and Division of Fish and Wildlife found Boateng's body on North Shores beach, a small community just north of Rehoboth.
Two deaths in Georgia
The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office confirmed a 16-year-old male drowned at a beach at Pointes West Army Resort in Appling, just west of Augusta, Georgia.
His body was recovered by divers on Monday afternoon, per the Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. The sheriff’s office identified the victim as Sevonn Small.
At Lake Lanier, a 23-year-old man died after he slipped while running on a dock near Holiday Marina around 10:30 p.m. local time, local media reported, citing the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The victim was identified as Gavrie Whitlock.
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Ohio teen dies in pond
In Ohio, Marysville High School student Jesse Shock died after drowning in a pond on Saturday, according to Marysville School District.
In a statement released to families, officials identified Shock as a freshman and said he was attending an Ohio State University cookout for “family and friends” when he died.
"We were all heartbroken to hear the tragic news, and want to respect the family's privacy," Marysville Board of Education Sue Devine told USA TODAY on Tuesday.
More info: Body of Maryland man washes ashore Delaware beach where Coast Guard warned of rip currents
Man found dead in Sebago Lake in Maine
In Maine, divers from the Maine Warden Service on Monday found the body of a 28-year-old Portland man last seen Sunday night in Sebago Lake State Park.
Mark Latti, a spokesman for the Maine Warden Service, told USA TODAY divers found Ahmed Doale unresponsive 10 feet away from shore in water about 8 feet deep.
Doale had been missing since around 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Latti said Doale and another person were in a motorboat when it broke down and drifted toward the shore. Doale, who did not know how to swim, was trying to push the boat away from shore near the Songa River before he disappeared, officials said.
Two deaths reported in North Carolina
In North Carolina, the National Park Service reported a 28-year-old Washington, D.C. woman died Monday in "a water-related incident" in the village of Avon at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
Park officials said about 2:30 p.m., crews responded to a report of a person unresponsive in the ocean in that area.
A witness told authorities the woman "was overtaken by strong waves and disappeared in the surf."
Shortly after disappearing, the victim was observed "face-down in rough ocean conditions" and later pulled from the water and pronounced dead.
Just one day earlier, local outlet WRAL reported a 13-year-old boy drowned in Jordan Lake, a reservoir in New Hope Valley, south of Durham.
On Sunday afternoon, the outlet reported, the Chatham County Sheriff's Office recovered the body of Kevin Lopez, who lived in Stanly County, about 100 miles west of the lake.
Wisconsin teens die in Lipsett Lake
In Wisconsin, two 18-year-olds died Friday in Lipsett Lake in Rusk in the northeastern part of the state, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources confirmed to USA TODAY.
CBS Minnesota identified the victims as Kyree Shaw and Grace Rhine.
Shaw's sister, Marissa Olinger told CBS her brother was home from school at the University of Wisconsin–Stout for the Labor Day weekend and was at a friend's cabin. Details regarding Rhine's drowning were not immediate available.
11-year-old dead at Minnesota lake
The Hennepin County Sheriff's Office confirmed an 11-year-old girl died while in Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis on Saturday.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office identified the girl to USA TODAY as Jocelyn Sanchez-Rosas.
The girl disappeared about 7:30 p.m. while swimming about 30 feet from the shore on the lake's eastern side, Sheriff's Office Major Pat Enderlein rescue crews located the girl close to 10 p.m.
The coroner ruled she died as a result of "an accidental freshwater drowning."
Man drowns in Arizona lake
A man drowned after jumping into Bartlett Lake from a dock on Saturday morning, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.
Authorities found the man's body around 12:10 p.m. local time Saturday, nearly four hours after deputies responded to the scene, according to the Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network. The man who drowned has not been identified and the cause of death is pending a medical examiner's report, according to the sheriff's office.
At least 75 dead due to Surf Zone fatalities in 2023
As of Aug. 31, at least 75 Surf Zone fatalities had been reported across the U.S. and its territories Puerto Rico and Guam, according to a database kept by the National Weather Service.
Of the deaths, NWS reported, 10 people died as a result of waves and dangerous currents.
Prior to the weekend, the U.S. Coast Guard issued warnings advising beachgoers and boaters about high surf and strong rip currents along the Mid-Atlantic as a result of Tropical Storm Idalia.
This is a developing story.
Contributing: Jenna Calderón, Asbury Park Press; Aidan Wohl, Arizona Republic
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior correspondent for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @nataliealund.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Drownings, rip currents, boating deaths reported on Labor Day weekend
