14-year-old drowns in Tacony Creek

As the days grow hotter, the creeks and swimming holes of the city beckon teenage boys with an appetite for risk and adventure. And just as regularly, one of those boys drowns.

It happened again Wednesday, to a 14-year-old boy who jumped off a bridge into the Tacony Creek in Juniata Park shortly before 3 p.m.

After sinking into the water, the teen, whose name was not released, thrashed to the surface and shouted to his friends: "I can't swim!"

A companion dove in after him, police said, but the would-be rescuer had to release him because he was getting pulled under himself.

It took divers from the Marine Unit about 15 minutes to recover the body. The teen was pronounced dead at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children at 4:10 p.m.

The site of the drowning is a popular swimming spot for area youths. The stone graffiti-covered bridge is in a shady glen and bears Fisher's Lane over the creek to a driving range adjacent to the Juniata Park Golf Club. But the pastoral setting is deceiving. In recent times, the creek here has claimed the lives of at least two others: Hassan Bowman, 13, in May 2002, and Lorenzo "Reny" Ramshaw, 9, in August 2004.

A sign posted on a tree declares: "No Swimming and No Loitering on Bridge" but that is scant deterrent on a broiling summer day.

Several teens who had biked to the scene late Wednesday afternoon said the spot, known simply as "the Bridge," is a well-known hangout that can attract crowds numbering in the dozens.

"Kids from all different neighborhoods, all races, boys, girls, adults even, they all be coming up here," said Richard Dabney, 13, of Feltonville.

The water under the bridge Wednesday was placid and murky. A discarded soda bottle floated by a submerged shopping cart and tire, and the creek did not look like an appetizing place for a dip. But several boys said it was better than a municipal pool.

"It be boring," said Steven Salas, 13, of Feltonville, referring to the city pool. "Ain't nothing to do there. Here, you can jump off the bridge and do tricks."

The police will sometimes shoo them away after a drowning, the boys said, but generally the authorities leave them alone. The group that gathers there regularly is largely self-policing, the boys said.

"The older kids put the young bulls on check," said Jorge Espaillat, 17, of Kensington.