Mayor: Second girl dies in drowning incident

<p>The cousin of a 13-year-old girl who drowned in Belmar last week has also died, according to the town&rsquo;s mayor.</p>

News 12 Staff

Jun 19, 2017, 9:45 PM

Updated 2,647 days ago

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The cousin of a 13-year-old girl who drowned in Belmar last week has also died, according to the town’s mayor.
Mayor Matt Doherty tells News 12 New Jersey that the 12-year-old who was on life support since Thursday died Monday afternoon.
The girl, identified as Emily, and her 13-year-old cousin Mitzi Hernandez were swimming at the Ninth Avenue Beach last week when they were caught up in rip currents. Bystanders rushed into the water to help them. No lifeguards were on duty at the time.
Belmar residents have donated at least $40,000 and Doherty has donated an extra $20,000 from the Mayor’s Fund to help the families deal with the tragedy.
Doherty says that changes to lifeguard staffing on off days or after hours could be made.