: On February 22, 1998 Vivian Sinott, 35, was paddling tandem with her husband on the Ramapo River near Mawah, NJ . Another tandem canoe and a kayak accompanied them. Their PFD’s were in their boats, but no one was wearing one. The Sinott’s canoe hit a downed tree, broached, and flipped. Her husband was thrown free, but Ms. Sinott, became trapped between the canoe and the tree under six feet of moving water. Local citizens saw what happened and called 911. Emergency workers first tried to move the canoe without success. Then a police officer, standing in two feet of water, cut into the tree using a local resident’s chain saw. Firefighters arrived, attached a rope to the log, and pulled it loose with the winch on their fire truck. They positioned another police officer downstream, tied into a tree surrounded by water. He caught Ms. Sinott after she floated free. Her total time under water was roughly thirty minutes. Both  she and her husband were transported to Valley Hospital . She was put on life support and later pronounced dead. Her husband was treated for hypothermia and released.

SOURCE: New Jersey Record; New Jersey Suburban Trends