Surfer Dies Off Rockaway Beach

The surfing community in rockaway is in mourning. The storm that hit the east coast made the surf way too rough. Now one of their friends is gone.

Alessandro Barreto, 36, was still learning to surf. He was apparently thrown from his surfboard Thursday morning. Then the board got tangled in rocks or wood pilings while he was attached to it. Firefighters pulled him from the water, but he died at the hospital.

"I don't think there's anyone that could be happy to lose anybody," said Fernando Pires, his friend. "He loved it, but loved it to the point that he dares too much. He abused, he didn't scare, wasn't scared of anything."

The big waves caused by the East Coast storm are a big draw for surfers, but they say you have to know your limits.

"There's a lot of water coming in right now and it throws a lot of force behind the waves when it crashes," said Donald Goeser, a surfer.

Alessandro has a 10-month-old son in the United States, but the rest of his family is in Brazil. They are hoping to raise enough money to get him back home.

If you would like to help Alessandro's family ship his body back to Brazil for burial, send donations to:

Elegante Pizzeria
92-01 Rockaway Beach Blvd.
Rockaway Beach, NY 11693
718-634-3914