New York City Man Drowns In Delaware

Rangers were contacted by Sullivan County 911 last Friday afternoon and advised of a river rescue operation in progress near a canoe livery base in Minisink, New York. Another call revealed that the person had been recovered, that CPR was in progress, and that he was being taken to Bon Secours Hospital in Port Jervis. Salvatore Valenziano, 20, of Staten Island, New York, had been swimming in the Delaware River with four companions when they attempted to swim across the river to the Pennsylvania shoreline. When they were about half way across, Valenziano begin having difficulty staying afloat, called for help, then went under. His companions attempted to assist but could not rescue him. Employees and campers from the canoe livery, Lander’s River Trips, heard the calls for help and responded in canoes. They pulled Valenziano into a canoe and began CPR, then turned him over to an ambulance crew on shore. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead after additional life support efforts failed. About three hours before the incident occurred, staff from Kittatinny Canoe, another canoe livery, advised them not to swim across the river and to wear lifejackets while in the water.