The man whose body was pulled from the water at Silver Sands State Park in Milford on July 4th is Rocco Daddio Jr., 34, of Hamden.
Daddio and a 9-year-old Hamden boy were walking on a sandbar connecting the beach to Charles Island when the tide came in and swept them into the water.
"The older gentleman was swept off, the boy was swept off also," Milford Fire Capt. Christopher Zak said. "The boy somehow, a great swimmer, was able to go out there and was rescued by some jet skiers."
Phillip Gangnath was on the beach with his family and saw the boy being rescued and brought to shore by the jet skier.
"It got chaotic quickly. The Park Rangers came up and got everybody out of the water," Gangnath said.
People quickly realized that Daddio did not return. Witnesses called 911 around 3 p.m.
Crews from the Connecticut DEEP, Milford Police and Fire Departments, Stratford Police and the Coast Guard searched Long Island Sound by air and by boat.
Daddio was found just before 6 p.m. and was pronounced dead at the scene.
He is survived by his wife and daughter.
