Updated 09/13/2009 09:52 AM
Charity Swimmer Dies In East River
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A swimmer taking part in a charity race in the East River Saturday died of an apparent heart attack shortly after entering the water.
Richard Harley, 59, of San Rafael, California was one of about 400 swimmers taking part in the 4th annual event from Manhattan to Brooklyn.
Race organizers say Harley ran into trouble just minutes after the one-kilometer race started.
They say a female swimmer nearby tried to give him mouth to mouth resuscitation, but that he later died at Downtown Beekman Hospital.
"They are swimmers, they are professionals, and this is something that they do, so I guess he thought it would be okay, I just feel bad, a bad thing to happen," said one race participant.
"It's unfortunate, it's one of those things no one wants to talk about or see, people in the race probably had their spirits up and no one wanted anything like this to happen," said one spectator.
Harley was trying to raise money for Daraja Academy, a girls school in Kenya.
The Medical Examiner is working to determine the exact cause of death.