Police: East Brunswick Family Drowned Trying To Save 8-Year-Old Girl Who Fell Into Pool
EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) – Police shared new details about the New Jersey family who drowned in their backyard swimming pool earlier this month in East Brunswick.
Authorities said 62-year-old Bharat Patel and his 33-year-old daughter-in-law Nisha Patel went into the pool to save Nisha's 8-year-old daughter.
All three victims were found unresponsive on June 22 after a neighbor heard screaming and called 911.
Investigators said that while the above-ground pool was mostly shallow at 3 1/2 feet deep, a portion was 7 feet deep, adding "it doesn't appear that the victims knew how to swim."
As CBS2's Jessica Layton reported, the family had just moved into the house about a month ago.
It was initially thought electricity may have played a role in their deaths, but the medical examiner determined they were accidental drownings.