SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 2020MB +NEW YORK CITY
They went into the water in the early after-
noon. Three teenage boys from Queens
whose school was closed for a holiday.
They had taken a bus to Rockaway Beach
that Tuesday in October with two other
friends and intended only to lounge on the
sand and listen to music.
But the waves beckoned in the sun.
In the three went. The water was frothy
and playful, bumping against their legs.
They were knee-deep. Then waist-deep.
And then they were gone.
The current had yanked them out to a
frigid place where the ocean floor fell away,
where the water churned with a wild energy
that could not be fathomed until one was
suffocating beneath it.
By chance, nearby surfers spotted one ofthe boys and paddled over, one of them of-
fering the nose of a surfboard.
“Do you see my buddies?” the boy gas-
ped. “Do you see my friends?”
Another surfer arrived. She ordered the
boy to take her board and strap it to his an-
kle. “I’m going to push you into the waves,”
she said. “Try to ride into shore.”
The boy somersaulted through the break-
ers, then eventually found the ground be-
neath him. He dragged himself forward, col-
lapsing to his knees. The friends who had
stayed on land ran up to him, as did the au-
thorities who had been called.
He held up two fingers: the number of his
missing friends. One was Adedayo Ade-
wale, an outgoing 15-year-old who had im-
migrated from Nigeria and spoke of becom-
ing a doctor.
The other was Gabriel Rice, 16, a brightstudent who had helped tutor classmates
for their state exams. Known as Gabe, he
was the only child of a single mother.
Both were good-natured basketball stars
at their Ozone Park high school, popular for
their light hearts and broad smiles.
Neither would surface that night.AN 11-MILE STRETCHthat opens up to the At-
lantic Ocean, the Rockaways calls to those
weary of New York’s rough edges. Less rau-
cous than Coney Island, it is an easy get-
away for those on a budget, the kind of open
playscape where a city kid can feel free.
It will be even more alluring this summer
with public pools closed and the usual activ-
ities canceled. After months of quarantine,
millions will be eager for a place to escape
the heat with enough room for social dis-JONAH MARKOWITZ FOR THE NEW YORK TIMESSwept Away by the Sea
Top, Rockaway Beach in
Queens. Above, a middle
school photo of Gabriel Rice,
16, who drowned last year.By CORINA KNOLLAn Irresistible Danger:
At least seven young people
drowned last year along a
Queens beach, where the
perils are underestimated.CONTINUED ON PAGE 62 SUNDAY ROUTINE
A streetwear designer prays,
plays, donates and works.
3 IN THE DIARY
Emergency résumé repairs,
and a banana on the bus.
4 THE NEW ECONOMYEarning some income by
cooking for the neighbors.
5 GAY BARS‘One night we made $10’:
a struggle in the outbreak.