Incident location, Long Island
Z, said there was a large party of boaters on the raft when it flipped. No further details about the specific cause have been released, and an ongoing police investigation was noted at the location of the incident. ---FAQ--- Q: When did the rest of the Sag Harbor class return home after the accident? A: The remaining sixth-grade students returned to Sag Harbor at 2 a.m. Thursday, May 29, 2026, following the accident. Superintendent Jeff Nichols confirmed in an earlier message just before 8 p.m. Wednesday that all other students were accounted for. ---FAQ--- Q: What support is the Sag Harbor School District offering after Cesar Albarracin Guncay’s death? A: Superintendent Jeff Nichols announced that school counselors would be available to students and families. He also provided links to the Response Crisis Center and the Long Island Crisis Center, both of which offer around-the-clock crisis hotlines and chats. Families were encouraged to keep open communication with their children and contact the school for additional help. ---FAQ--- Q: Who confirmed the death of the Sag Harbor student in the Poconos rafting accident? A: Jeff Nichols, the superintendent of the Sag Harbor School District, confirmed the death just before 11 p.m. on Wednesday, May 28, 2026. He sent a ParentSquare message to school families formally identifying the student as sixth-grader Cesar Albarracin Guncay.
What Happened
A sixth-grade student from the Sag Harbor School District died Wednesday afternoon during a river rafting accident on the Lehigh River in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains, according to a report by The East Hampton Star. The student, identified as Cesar Albarracin Guncay, was a member of the Pierson Middle School sixth-grade class participating in the school’s annual class trip to the Poconos when the tragedy unfolded.
Just before 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sag Harbor School District Superintendent Jeff Nichols sent an email to school families with the first indication that something had gone terribly wrong. “While our 6th grade students were on the river rafting session in the Poconos this afternoon, there was an accident and a student was reported missing,” Nichols wrote, according to The East Hampton Star. That same message confirmed that “all other students are accounted for,” and Nichols noted there was an “ongoing police investigation at the location of the incident.”
Pennsylvania TV station WFMZ, citing officials from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, reported that “there was a large party of boaters on a raft” when it flipped, as relayed by The East Hampton Star. The school offered no further details about the specific circumstances of the accident beyond that account.
The tragedy was officially confirmed just before 11 p.m. Wednesday, when Superintendent Nichols sent a follow-up message through the ParentSquare platform to school families formally identifying the student who had died. “It is with profound sadness and a heavy heart that we share the devastating news of the passing of our beloved sixth-grade student, Cesar Albarracin Guncay,” Nichols wrote. “There are no words to adequately express the depth of this loss. Cesar was a cherished member of our school family, a child who mattered deeply to all who had the privilege of knowing him.” Nichols added: “His absence will leave an irreplaceable space in our classrooms, our hallways, and our lives.”
The rest of the sixth-grade class made the long journey back to Long Island after the accident, arriving in Sag Harbor at 2 a.m. Thursday. In his message to families, Nichols extended the district’s condolences directly to Cesar’s loved ones: “On behalf of the entire district, we extend our deepest condolences to Cesar’s family and loved ones during this extraordinarily difficult time. We ask our community to honor Cesar’s memory and keep his family in our thoughts.”
In addition to announcing the availability of school counselors, Nichols included links to two crisis resources for families and students struggling to process the news: the Response Crisis Center and the Long Island Crisis Center, both of which offer around-the-clock crisis hotlines and chat services. “We encourage families to keep close communication with their children, speak with them openly and compassionately, and contact the school whenever additional help is needed,” he wrote.
Location & Road Context
The accident occurred on the Lehigh River in the Pocono Mountains region of Pennsylvania — a popular destination for school group rafting excursions from the New York metropolitan area, including Long Island. The Poconos trip is described as an annual tradition for Pierson Middle School’s sixth-grade class in the Sag Harbor School District. The Lehigh River is a federally designated Wild and Scenic River corridor and is frequently used for organized whitewater rafting activities, though it can present significant hazards, particularly for inexperienced or younger rafters. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, which oversees waterway safety in the commonwealth, was among the officials responding to the scene.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
At the time of Superintendent Nichols’s initial notification to families just before 8 p.m. Wednesday, he noted that there was an “ongoing police investigation at the location of the incident” on the Lehigh River. No further details about the investigation, including which law enforcement agency is leading it or whether any findings have been released, were made available by the school district. The school said it would not be providing additional details about the accident itself. Authorities from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission were among the officials on scene, per the WFMZ report cited by The East Hampton Star.
Broader Impact
The loss of Cesar Albarracin Guncay joins a painful recent chapter for the East End community, which has seen a series of fatal accidents involving young people in recent years — including the sentencing of a Moriches teen to 4 to 12 years for a DWI crash that killed an East Hampton teenager earlier this year. The Sag Harbor School District’s decision to immediately activate both in-school counseling and external 24-hour crisis resources reflects growing awareness of the need for swift, coordinated mental health responses when tragedy strikes a school community. Families in need of support can reach the Long Island Crisis Center or the Response Crisis Center, both of which offer free, around-the-clock crisis hotlines and online chat services.