Harold C. Bauser, 83, of Saugerties, drowned this afternoon at the Saugerties Village Beach, according to police.
Police said Bauser, who was at the beach with a friend to go fishing, were placing their boat into the water at the boat ramp when the boat began to drift away. Bauser entered the water in an attempt to retrieve the boat and return it to the dock, at which point he became unconscious.
A Good Samaritan, who had been summoned by a witness, found Bauser floating face-down about 400 feet from shore in water 15-feet deep, brought him to shore and attempted to revive him with CPR. Paramedics from DIAZ Ambulance initiated advance life support efforts and although they were able to reestablish a pulse while in transit to the Health Alliance Hospital Broadway Campus Kingston, Bauser was pronounced dead in the hospital’s emergency room at 2:50 p.m.
The Saugerties Police Department received assistance at the scene from members of both the Village of Saugerties Fire Department and the Glasco Fire Department.
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