Wilmington, NC.- A man who was swimming off the coast of North Carolina on Sunday, Sept. 1, died after he was pulled from the surf at Oak Island, police said.
The incident was reported as a missing swimmer at 5:15 p.m. near the beach access location on SE 75th Street, according to a news release from the Oak Island Police Department.
REPORT
Brannon Rife, 37, of Reynoldsburg, Ohio, was swimming with his family when he went missing in the water, police said.
About two minutes after the 911 call, bystanders were able to find Rife, who was unresponsive, and took him to the sand, according to police.
“They began performing CPR when Fire Department crews arrived. Additional life-saving measures were taken before Mr. Rife was transported by EMS to Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.“,” officials said in the statement.
Police are investigating the incident, which they are calling an accidental drowning, according to the news release.
“No distress signals were reported and there were no apparent adverse conditions in the water at the time. Surf conditions were green flag.“,” police said.
Oak Island is located in Brunswick County, south of Wilmington.
