BUXTON, N.C. (AP) - A man from Ohio has died in the waters off Cape Hatteras National Seashore at a time when a high risk of rip currents was forecast.
Seashore officials say in a news release that the 53-year-old man from Bellbrook, Ohio, died Monday in the Atlantic Ocean near Buxton. A family member brought the man to shore, where bystanders unsuccessfully administered CPR.
National Park Service rangers and local emergency responders came to the scene. The cause of death won't be known until a medical examination is performed, although officials described it as water related.
A high risk of rip currents was forecast for most of the beaches along the seashore on Monday. That means that "wind and/or wave conditions support dangerous rip currents. Rip currents are life-threatening to anyone entering the surf."
This is the first water-related death off Cape Hatteras National Seashore this year. Five people died in 2018, seven in 2017, and eight in 2016.