LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, Fla. – A woman who authorities believe was around 60 years old died Monday after being pulled from the water off Lauderdale-by-the-Sea.
According to Lauderdale-by-the-Sea Fire Rescue spokesman Steve D’Oliveira, a group of snorkelers were in the water around 11 a.m. when the woman became separated from the group.
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D’Oliveira said the group headed to shore and realized the woman was no longer with them.
A search ensued and the woman was found near the pier by Good Samaritans.
Karolina Austin told Local 10 News that she and her husband, Thomas Austin, were finishing up their scuba dive when a young lady called out to them to help her, saying that she thought a woman was dead in the water.
Karolina Austin said the woman was floating in the water with her snorkel gear still on, so she and her husband told the lady to tap on the woman because she might just be snorkeling.
Thomas Austin then flipped the woman over and they saw that she was blue.
The Austins then pulled the woman to shore where bystanders performed CPR before first responders arrived.
The woman was then taken to Holy Cross Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
“I hope the family is able to find some closure and (I’m) glad we could bring her body to shore,” Karolina Austin said.
It’s unclear whether the woman suffered a medical episode at the time she became separated from her group, D’Oliveira said.
Her identity and cause of death have not yet been released.