A Pennsylvania couple’s Florida vacation turned into horror when they drowned in front of their six children after getting caught in a rip current.
Brian Warter, 51, and his girlfriend Erica Wishart, 48, were on the beach behind the Marriott hotel on Hutchinson Island, north of West Palm Beach, on Thursday afternoon when the tragedy occurred.
It was the couple’s children, mostly teenagers, who called 911.
Two of the teenagers were also caught in the current, but managed to make it to shore.
They tried to help their parents but couldn’t reach them because their current had become too dangerous.
Brian Warter, 51, and his girlfriend Erica Wishart, 48, were on the beach on Hutchinson Island, north of West Palm Beach, on Thursday afternoon when the tragedy occurred.
“Multiple witnesses told our investigators that both the man and woman, who are now deceased, fell into the ocean, directly into a rip current and were immediately pulled from shore,” said County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy by Martin, John Bedensiek.
“One of the deceased’s sons tried to shout instructions to them on how to swim parallel to the shore, but they panicked and unfortunately sank.”
Authorities said the couple was unconscious when lifeguards pulled them from the water and began performing CPR.
They were pronounced dead at the hospital.
The Sheriff’s Crisis Intervention Team deputy assisted the couple’s children throughout the day and night while they awaited the arrival of other family members in Florida, the sheriff’s office said.
Budensiek added: “They are teenagers. They are not even 20 years old yet. They have gone through two dramatic scenarios.
‘They are on the beach and they saw them drown. They observed resuscitation efforts on the beach.
Brian Warter, 51, and Erica Wishard, 48, were on the beach behind the Marriott Hotel on Hutchinson Island, north of West Palm Beach, on Thursday afternoon when tragedy struck.
“They were at the hospital observing some resuscitation efforts, so they are extremely traumatized.”
A red flag on the beach Thursday indicated rough grass.
Warter’s parents, Larry and Susie Warter, said WPTV His world has been turned upside down after the death of his son.
Warter and Wishart had started dating a year and a half ago and had merged their families.
They went to Florida with Wishart’s four children and Warter’s two children, ages 22 and 20.
DailyMail.com has contacted the sheriff’s office for more information on this story.
Breakers are strong, narrow currents that flow roughly from the coast through the waves and out to sea.
According to the American Lifesaving Association, there are more than 100 deaths a year in the United States attributed to rip currents, and almost all of them are preventable.
This year alone, rip currents have killed 39 people, according to the National Weather Service.
Almost half of them were in Florida.
