HUNTER \u2014 A 15-year-old Brooklyn boy drowned Saturday at Fawn\u2019s Leap, a waterfall and swimming hole located on Kaaterskill Creek that has been the site of several deaths and rescues in recent years, the Greene County Sheriff\u2019s Office said Monday.<\/p>\n
The boy disappeared after jumping off a low ledge near the base of the falls while swimming with a group of friends shortly before noon, according to the sheriff\u2019s office. Investigators believe the hydraulic current caused by the waterfall was too strong for him to escape.<\/p>\n
Three of the teen\u2019s friends entered the water and attempted to pull him out, but they were \u201cunable to reach him as they started to get pulled under as well,\u201d according to the sheriff\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
Forest rangers with the state Department of Conservation pulled the boy\u2019s body from the creek approximately 20 minutes after he went in. Paramedics on scene could not resuscitate him, the sheriff\u2019s office said. He was taken to Columbia Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.<\/p>\n
The boy\u2019s identity was not public as of Monday morning.<\/p>\n
Fawn\u2019s Leap is one of several unsanctioned swimming holes at the base of the Catskill Mountains that draw large crowds in warm months. Rescuers have been called to the site dozens of times in recent years as its popularity grew on social media. A 16-year-old boy from Brooklyn drowned at the waterfall<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n The swimming hole is one of several deep pools on the Kaaterskill Creek, a brook that spills down from the northern Catskills and winds back and forth over Route 23A, one of the few roads through the mountain range. Its sides are abutted by steep cliffs, the highest of which is 30 feet above the surface of the water, Greene County Sheriff Pete Kusminsky told the Times Union<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n Local adventurers have been swimming at Fawn\u2019s Leap for many years, but the spot has become more popular with out-of-town visitors with the rise of social media, smartphones and GPS technology. YouTube videos about exploring the Catskills include directions for how to reach the spot and show dozens of people ringing the cliffs around Fawn\u2019s Leap, with many attempting flips and other acrobatics before they hit the water. Some of the videos have been viewed more than 100,000 times.<\/p>\n Sites around the Catskills have become overcrowded since the beginning of the pandemic, when COVID shutdowns created a surge in outdoor recreation. The\u00a0Kaaterskill Clove area, which includes Kaaterskill Falls, has seen a surge in visitation, leading state officials to call for measures<\/a> to restrict visitation.<\/p>\n