West Point cadet on ventilator after trying to save swimmer

Officials say a West Point cadet from Missouri is on life support after he tried to save a swimmer who was caught in a rip current off a Long Island beach.

Police say 18-year-old Thomas Surdyke, of Festus, Missouri, was pulled from the waters following a rescue attempt on Friday at Coopers Beach in Southampton, New York.

Newsday reports Janice Laiben Surdyke, who says she's his mother, posted on Facebook late Tuesday that he would be on a ventilator for the next 48 hours so he can donate his organs.

The U.S. Military Academy at West Point says a cadet is on life support following a Long Island beach incident but couldn't release further details.

Officials say the swimmer Surdyke tried to rescue is OK.