New York woman drowns in stand-up paddleboard yoga class accident

Paddleboard yoga, as seen here in a class in Maine, involves balancing on a paddleboard while doing yoga poses.

(CNN)A New York woman drowned Friday while taking part in a stand-up paddleboard yoga class on Long Island, police said.

Lisa Margaritis, 48, an experienced paddleboarder, was trying to help another woman who was struggling in the strong current under a bridge in Hashamomuck Pond when Margaritis' paddleboard got caught on a bridge piling and she fell in, Southold Police chief Martin Flatley said in a news release.

Because she was tethered to the board, Margaritis wasn't able to free herself, Flatley said.

A jogger passing by jumped in and was able to free Margaritis from the piling and bring her to land, he said.

Southold police, the fire department's rescue squad and a hospital paramedic arrived and began CPR. Margaritis was taken to a Long Island hospital, where she was later pronounced dead, the release said.

By Theresa Waldrop and Evan Simko-Bednarski, CNN >>