Memorial for firefighter who drowned at Cook’s Pond

A firefighter and diving expert who drowned last summer while swimming at Cook’s Pond in Denville will be honored Wednesday at his former workplace in New York.

The Fashion Institute of Technology will hold a memorial celebration for Joseph Arcoleo Jr. at 4:30 p.m. in FIT’s Katie Murphy Amphitheatre in Midtown Manhattan. Arcoleo had been director of environmental health and safety at the school.

On July 18, Arcoleo, 60, was reported missing at the pond by lifeguards who knew him. They last saw him when he emerged from the pond in his bathing suit around 6 p.m. Nobody saw him re-enter the water at the 12-acre swim facility run by the township Recreation Department, but his clothes, sneakers and eyeglasses were found on the beach as the facility was closing at 8 p.m. His car was in the parking lot.

His reported disappearance set off a massive search and rescue mission at the pond and surrounding roads and trails, with more than 100 people coming out. The search went on for 19 hours before State Police divers, using side-scan sonar, found Arcoleo in the water at 2:39 p.m. the next day.

His body was found 30 yards from shore, just beyond the roped-off area where swimming is permitted, according to police.

County Medical Examiner Ronald Suarez said Arcoleo drowned but the victim had obvious and serious heart disease. Arcoleo was unaware of his heart condition, Suarez said, and likely suffered a medical incident involving his heart before losing consciousness and drowning.

Arcoleo’s widow, Lourdes , later wrote a letter to the Daily Record, thanking the searchers from both Denville and out of town.

“The community of Denville continues to be a place that rises to the occasion of the needs at hand, and we will never forget the kindness, love, support, and tribute we experienced on behalf of my husband, Joseph Arcoleo,” she wrote.

For more information, visit the FIT memorial page for Arcoleo at http://fitnyc.edu/23257.asp.

Staff Writer William Westhoven: 973-428-6627; wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com.