A 12-year-old boy died Wednesday evening after a rafting accident on the Lehigh River in East Penn Township, Pennsylvania, during a sixth grade class trip from the Sag Harbor Union Free School District on Long Island. The raft capsized and all five people aboard were thrown into the water.
The boy did not immediately resurface, prompting search and rescue operations that later recovered him from the river. He was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. local time on May 27, and the Carbon County Coroner's Office later identified him as Cesar Albarracin Guncay of Sag Harbor, New York.
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is leading the investigation with support from the Pennsylvania State Police. Whitewater Rafting Adventures, which was handling the guided outing, said it is cooperating fully with both agencies. The other four boaters were recovered safely.
The coroner's office said Guncay died by drowning. The crash happened at about 5:30 p.m. local time while the group was traveling in an inflatable raft as part of a larger excursion with a guide, officials said. The commission said life jackets were in use during the rafting trip, and Mike Parker said, “Life jackets were in use, but as with any recreational boating fatality investigation, we will conduct a review of all safety equipment.”
Later that night, Sag Harbor Superintendent Jeff Nichols told parents that Cesar had died during the annual class rafting trip. He said, “There are no words to adequately express the depth of this loss,” and added that “Cesar was a cherished member of our school family, a child who mattered deeply to all who had the privilege of knowing him.” Students on the trip returned to school at about 2 a.m. Thursday after leaving early.
The outing was part of a school field trip involving 74 students and was in its third year, according to reports. The accident has now become the focus of an ongoing state investigation, and the details that matter most are already clear: a school trip meant to be routine ended with one child dead, four others safe, and a family in Sag Harbor facing an unthinkable return home.
