Services to be held for FDNY firefighter who drowned rescuing daughter at the Jersey Shore
Services will be held on Thursday at a funeral home in Fair Lawn, followed by a funeral on Friday.
Services will be held later this week for an FDNY firefighter who died last week while trying to rescue his daughter at the Jersey Shore.
Services will be held on Thursday at a funeral home in Fair Lawn, followed by a funeral on Friday.
Mark Batista, 39, drowned in Avon on Friday after his daughter was pulled out by a rip current. Relatives asked for privacy on Monday at the family’s home in Teaneck.
Authorities say that Batista died around 8:30 p.m. after his teenage daughter started to struggle in the ocean. Police have said Batista went into the water to help but he also became distressed.
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The daughter was able to be pulled out and survived. Batista was found, and first responders attempted to keep him alive. He was taken to Jersey Shore Medical Center but did not survive, according to officials.
Batista and his daughter were on a beach that was marked as not having lifeguards on duty. Avon, like other beaches along the shoreline, does not staff full-time lifeguards during the week until around June 17.
The FDNY put out a message on social media following Batista’s death, stating, “This tragic and sudden loss is devastating to all who knew him and worked with him, especially his family. Through his many years of service, first as an EMT and then as a firefighter for the past 10 years, he showed how much of a hard worker he is & someone who loves his family.”
Batista is survived by his wife, daughter and two sons.
