Three family members drown trying to save young girl - because none of them could swim, authorities say

Three members of the same New Jersey family died trying to save a drowning eight-year-old girl because none of them could swim.

The incident transpired when the child jumped into a six or seven-foot deep section of a pool at the family's newly purchased East Brunswick home on Monday afternoon.

According to sources cited by the New York Post, East Brunswick Police Department and Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office say that it was the girl's aunt who initially called for help, prompting her 62-year-old grandfather, Bharat Patel, to jump into the pool in a bid to save her.

However, he did not know how to swim.

The girl's mother, 33-year-old Nisha Patel, then jumped in, but she also didn't know how to swim and struggled in the water as she attempted to save her father and daughter before drowning herself.

NBC New York reported that the aunt who witnessed the incident was able to reach the eight-year-old in the water, but she wasn't able to do so fast enough to save her life.

The three were living on Clearview Road in a home they had purchased in April, public records show.

Per CNN, the county Medical Examiner's Office ruled on Tuesday that all three family members died as a result of accidental drowning.

Authorities originally investigated the possibility that the trio had died by electrocution and not drowning, but this was ruled out on Tuesday afternoon, according to Fox News. Middlesex County prosecutors and police said there was no evidence of a connection between electrical problems and the deaths.

A neighbor who spoke to Bharat prior to the tragedy told NBC that the pool had recently been done up and they believe that Monday was the first time that the family had used it.

Mayor Brad Cohen told NJ.com on Tuesday that the "entire East Brunswick community is shocked and saddened."

"Our condolences go out to the family and may they find strength from the community that shares in their grief," he said.

A neighbor told the news outlet that a pool company had been witnessed at the property opening the pool for the season and there appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary about it.

"It's just horrible. It's tragic," she said.