60-year-old man dies trying to save woman struggling in current at beach, CT cops say

A 60-year-old man died trying to save a woman struggling in a current at a beach in Connecticut, police say.

Mauricico Rodas-Garcia and the woman were walking along a “partially submerged” sandbar when she fell into the water and had trouble getting out at Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk on July 31, according to the Norwalk Police Department.

Rodas-Garcia entered the water to help but went under without resurfacing — prompting beachgoers to call 911, a police news release says.

Bystanders pulled him to shore unconscious while helping the woman, who was unharmed, out of the water, according to authorities.

An officer arrived as one bystander performed CPR on Rodas-Garcia and “took over,” the release says.

Afterward, an ambulance transported Rodas-Garcia to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to police.

The department offered its “sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Rodas-Garcia” and commended “the bystanders who brought both people back to shore and rendered aid,” the release says.

Calf Pasture Beach is located along the Long Island Sound, north of Long Island.

It is roughly 70 miles southwest of Hartford.

This story was originally published August 1, 2022 at 7:01 AM with the headline "60-year-old man dies trying to save woman struggling in current at beach, CT cops say."

Julia Marnin

McClatchy DC

Julia Marnin covers courts for McClatchy News, writing about criminal and civil affairs, including cases involving policing, corrections, civil liberties, fraud, and abuses of power. As a reporter on McClatchy’s National Real-Time Team, she’s also covered the COVID-19 pandemic and a variety of other topics since joining in 2021, following a fellowship with Newsweek. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, she was raised in South Jersey and is now based in New York State.