NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- A 54-year-old man who drowned in the New Smyrna Beach surf Aug. 22, has been identified as Angel Rosa of Orlando, the Volusia County Beach Patrol said.
Rosa, who died after washing ashore unconscious between Flounder and Drum avenues on Bethune Beach, was the first drowning victim of the year in Volusia County beaches.
Lifeguards who spotted him on the beach performed CPR and he was rushed by EVAC ambulance to Bert Fish Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, said Capt. Scott Petersohn, spokesman for the Beach Patrol.
Petersohn said he was "worried something like this would happen" considering how swollen the waves became from the distant passing of Hurricane Bill. The victim was seen floating in the waves and was apparently "body surfing," which wasn't a good idea, Petersohn said, because the surf was ripe for rip currents.