Inwood couple drown off Far Rockaway beach

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A couple from Inwood apparently drowned in the water off Far Rockaway beach at Beach 9th Street and Seagirt Boulevard in Far Rockaway, west of the Atlantic Beach Bridge, after what is being reported as an impromptu swimming lesson gone awry.

Keylon Ramsay, 28, and Umarie Chamble, 25, both of Inwood, were pulled from the water near 10:30 p.m. on July 9.

"[I] have seen them many times and they have always seemed like such nice outgoing people," said fellow Inwood resident Sasha Young. "So sorry to hear this."

Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department Chief James McHugh said that the couple were taken to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital and pronounced dead on July 9. It was reported that the two were drinking and Chamble was going to teach Ramsay how to swim.


“On July 9 at 10:22 p.m. LCFD responded to a report of a person face down in the water,” McHugh said. “FDNY removed one person from the water in cardiac arrest. A shoreline search was conducted and a second person was found in cardiac arrest.”

Atlantic Beach Rescue, and East Rockaway, Inwood and Long Beach fire departments also responded as well as the Coast Guard and NYPD. 

“My prayers go out to them and their families during this difficult time, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards wrote on Twitter. “Every summer we encounter drownings at this location on the beach. Please be careful and please avoid swimming without lifeguards.”