A 12-year-old New York City girl drowned on a class trip last week along an unpatrolled beach on Long Island, the New York Times reported.

Our New York City injury lawyers handle drowning cases involving residential and commercial swimming pools as well as accidents involving school-sanctioned field trips or injuries that occur on playgrounds or school property. As families prepare to celebrate the Fourth of July, children should be cautioned about the dangers when near a pool or open water, or while riding in a boat.

Drownings are a startlingly common occurrence in the United States, claiming an average of 10 lives per day. More than 3,400 people a year are killed in drowning accidents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Children are the frequent victims. In fact, drowning is the second-leading cause of injury deaths in children under the age of 14.

In this case, the 12-year-old Harlem public schools student drown while on a class trip along an unpatrolled section of Long Beach on Long Island. She was one of two dozen students on a sixth-grade class trip to the Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering.

The beach was not scheduled to open until this week and there were signs at entrances stating that no life guards were on duty and that swimming was prohibited. While the water was calm, officials said there was likely a rip current.

Rip currents can be particularly dangerous and can claim victims in water less than knee deep. A rip current rushing back out to sea through a narrow opening in sand, a reef, or a rocky ledge. The resulting undertow can jerk a victim off their feet and pull them out to sea.

The city manager reported that several students were in the water when they noticed their classmate was missing around noon. It took search and rescue workers 90 minutes to locate the girl. She was taken to Long Beach Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

A teacher was also injured after diving into the water to try and help.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the city would investigate to determine what happened.

"Let's not go and rush and assign blame," Mr. Bloomberg said. "I think at this point what we have to focus on is maybe grieving and having a prayer for the child and see if we can help the parents through what is obviously the most difficult situation any parent could possibly experience. We'll focus on that right now."