Swimmer Dies After Bradley Beach Rescue

A 24-year-old Jersey City man died Tuesday night about an hour after being pulled from the ocean in Bradley Beach, authorities said. 

The man was indentified by authorities Wednesday as John H. Ongaki. 

Ongaki was pronounced dead at 6:48 p.m. Tuesday at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where he was taken by ambulance after rescue crews from several towns responded to reports of a group of distressed swimmers just off Brinley Avenue beach, Bradley Beach Police Chief Leonard Guida said. 

Divers from ANSWERS, a multi-agency team, spotted Ongaki tumbling in the surf just north of a nearby jetty, Guida said. 

Ongaki had been under water for roughly 15 minutes when the rescue team spotted him just after 6 p.m., Guida said. No lifeguards were on duty. 

Three other swimmers were moved from the beach by stretcher, while another left under his own power, Guida said.

All five swimmers were in the same party, Guida said. 

Emergency crews from Bradley Beach, Ocean Grove, Neptune and Avon-by-the-Sea responded to the incident, Guida said.