Teen Drowned at N.Y.C. Beach After Telling Lifeguards to Save His Best Friend First, His Mom Says
Teen Drowned at N.Y.C. Beach After Telling Lifeguards to Save His Best Friend First, His Mom Says
Adam EnglandThu, August 13, 2026 at 10:08 AM UTC
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Sir Audley SykesCredit: GoFundMe -
A 17-year-old boy drowned at Rockaway Beach in New York City after telling lifeguards to save his friend first, his mom has said
Sir Audley Sykes and his best friend were swimming on the evening of Sunday, Aug. 9, when they got caught in a rip current
Sykes, who played football for the Rosedale Jets, had been preparing for his senior year of high school
An “extremely loving” teenage boy drowned at a New York City beach after urging lifeguards to save his friend first, his mom has said.
Sir Audley Sykes, 17, was with his best friend at Rockaway Beach in Queens at around 7:30 p.m. local time on Sunday, Aug. 9, when the pair were caught in a rip current, ABC 7 New York reported. Local outlet QNS stated that the friend, who hasn’t been identified, was 18 years old.
Lifeguards present at the beach weren’t in their chairs at the time, because it was after swimming hours, but they rushed into the water from their stations when they spotted the teens struggling, according to ABC 7.
Per QNS, emergency medical services and New York Police Department officers also joined the rescue mission.
Sir Audley SykesCredit: GoFundMe
When lifeguards located the teenagers, Sykes’ mom, Patrice Thompson, said her son urged them to save his friend first, she told ABC 7.
“His best friend said he got tired... that’s when the lifeguard got to him, and he told the lifeguard to go to his friend and my son said, ‘No, go and pull my best friend out of the water,’ ” Thompson shared.
“He would save someone else before he thought about himself and that’s the thing I appreciated about him the most,” she added to the outlet.
Lifeguards pulled both teens from the water, but only the friend survived. Sykes became the first person to drown at a N.Y.C. beach this summer, ABC 7 reported.
“I saw my baby on a stretcher, unresponsive, his heart beating on a machine,” Thompson told the outlet. “Two days after my birthday, I had to announce that my son passed away due to drowning.”
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Thompson said Sykes had left her a birthday gift on her bed. “And I said thank you boo. And he’s like, ‘No problem mom,’ ” she recalled to ABC 7.
Rockaway Beach in New York CityCredit: Sascha Kilmer / Getty Images
Thompson set up a GoFundMe to raise funds for funeral costs and family counseling. She paid tribute to her son, the eldest of seven brothers, on the page.
Thompson explained on the fundraiser that her late son had been preparing to start his senior year at Williamsburg High School and played football for the Rosedale Jets. “He was extremely loving,” she said. “He played a huge role in our family’s life and will truly be missed.”
The grieving mom wore her son’s hospital bracelet and football jersey while she spoke to ABC 7. “He was a great football player. They were a great team. They were a great family for me and for him,” she said, reminiscing on the memories she shared with her son.
She explained that looking back on happier times made her feel like everything “wasn’t just ripped away” from her.
“They always say the good die young,” Thompson told the outlet. “It’s gotta be for a reason.”
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New York State Assembly member Alicia Hyndman said her “heart breaks” for Sykes’ family in a statement shared on Wednesday, Aug. 12. She praised the late teenager for his selflessness, as well as urging people to support the fundraiser.
“We’re saddened by this tragic loss of life, and our hearts go out to the victim’s family and friends,” the N.Y.C. Department of Parks & Recreation had said in a statement the previous day, per QNS.
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Source: “AOL Breaking”
