Dennis McDaniels, 36, of Northeast Philadelphia, a city firefighter who most recently worked in Frankford, died Sunday while competing in a triathlon in Cape May County.
McDaniels was almost finished with the swimming portion of the Escape the Cape Triathlon when he suffered an apparent cardiac arrest just after 9 a.m., authorities said.
He was pulled from the water off the coast of Lower Township, and medics performed CPR, according to a joint statement from the Delaware River and Bay Authority and DelMoSports LLC, which organized the event.
McDaniels was taken to Cape Regional Medical Center and died at 10:20 a.m. Autopsy results are pending.
He had previously competed in the triathlon multiple times, according to DelMoSports.
CBS3 reported that McDaniels was a 12-year veteran of the Fire Department who had been working at Ladder 15, located at Foulkrod and Darrah streets.
McDaniels, a Holy Family University graduate, is survived by his wife and four children. ••
