WESTPORT, Conn. (AP) – Westport’s first selectman has ordered a review of safety procedures at a local sailing school after a 3-year-old girl drowned during a lesson.

First Selectman Gordon Joseloff says Longshore Sailing School operates under a town lease, and that he wants to know whether it followed safety standards for its students and instructors.

Alexandra Vitale of Brooklyn, N.Y., was aboard a sailboat in Long Island Sound on Tuesday with an instructor and her cousins, ages 3 and 6, when a gust of wind blew the vessel onto its side.

An autopsy determined she drowned. The cousins and 18-year-old instructor were rescued.

Authorities say all the children were wearing lifejackets. A man who answered the phone at the sailing school Friday said no one was available to comment.

Westport police are investigating the incident.



Information from: Greenwich Time, http://www.greenwichtimeonline.com

AP-ES-08-30-08 1407EDT


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