Woman Dies Water Tubing On Peconic Bay

A family boat excursion on Peconic Bay turned deadly when a woman who had been tubing suffered a medical event and abruptly died.

Southampton Town Police said four people were on board a pontoon boat in the open water on Sunday, August 4: the skipper, his wife, their 13-year-old daughter, and the skipper’s 65-year-old cousin. The teenager and the cousin, a woman, were water tubing. Eventually, they fell off the tube and the boat came around to pick them up. The teen climbed aboard but the woman told the others she couldn’t hoist herself up.

They said she then lost consciousness. Southampton Town and Suffolk County rescue squads were called to the scene. A plane spotted the boat and a marine unit raced to the location. She was dead by the time help arrived. Police did not release the name of the deceased as of press time.

Pedestrian Run Down

Ann Marie Christina, 38 of East Quogue was walking in North Babylon with a companion on July 29, when she was struck by a utility van, causing fatal injuries. The driver fled the scene but Suffolk County police say they tracked him down.

Donnell Hicks, 26, of Queens, was arrested and charged with a felony count of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, a felony.

Hicks was subsequently indicted on August 2, although he said he was unaware he struck a pedestrian. Another witness said the accused stopped briefly, saw the fallen woman, and then drove off.

The van also struck Eric Krems, 40, who sustained non-life-threatening injuries; no further information was provided.

rmurphy@indyeastend.com