A 13-year-old boy from Palm Beach County has been identified as the person who died in an accidental drowning off of Fort Lauderdale beach on Friday amid dangerous rip current conditions, officials said.
Jerry Hyppolite and at least two of his friends were swimming near the 800 block of Seabreeze Boulevard just before 5 p.m. when they began struggling in the rough water, according to Fort Lauderdale Police, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue and the U.S. Coast Guard Southeast.
All of South Florida’s coast was under a high rip current risk at the time with 20 to 25 mph winds elevating wave heights to 5-7 feet, according to National Weather Service Miami advisories.
Lifeguards rescued the boy’s friends from the water, but they weren’t able to find Hyppolite, said Frank Guzman, a spokesperson for Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue. They “immediately called for an all-out search.”
Fire rescue crews, law enforcement and the U.S. Coast Guard searched with boats, jet skis and a helicopter for nearly two hours into Friday evening.
Fort Lauderdale Police’s Dive Team found the boy’s body shortly after 8 p.m., department spokesperson Casey Liening said. Detectives determined there was no foul play.
Fort Lauderdale lifeguards rescued 33 swimmers over the weekend while the warning of dangerous rip currents remained in place, Guzman said. Lifeguards made more than 4,300 “preventative actions,” he said, “where we make contact with a swimmer prior to them being in distress.” Lifeguards since January have made 145 rescues.
Another high rip current risk is in effect through Tuesday evening for Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties, according to NWS Miami.
#PublicSafetyAnnouncement: Break the Grip of the Rip!
If caught in a rip current:
1) Stay calm
2) Float
3) Swim parallel to shore with the waves
4) Wave and yell to get attention on shore@FLFR411 @MiamiDadeFire @PBCFR https://t.co/7bGcZySkWb pic.twitter.com/nUTIivSwOj— NWS Miami (@NWSMiami) April 21, 2025