Police say the 58-year-old was found near Husson and Gildersleeve avenues in Clason Point.
BRONX, NY — A 58-year-old woman was found dead Thursday after firefighters pulled a body from waters behind a home in the Clason Point section of the Bronx, authorities said. The call came in around 11 a.m. near Husson and Gildersleeve avenues along Pugsley Creek, and emergency medical workers pronounced her dead at the scene.
Officials said the woman’s identity is being withheld pending family notification, and the city medical examiner will determine how she died. New York City police and fire crews responded to the residential block bordering the tidal creek after a homeowner reported seeing something floating behind his property. The discovery has prompted an investigation into the circumstances of the woman’s entry into the water and whether any criminality is involved. As of Sunday, police had not announced arrests or a suspected cause, and investigators were interviewing neighbors and reviewing available video in the low-lying waterfront area.
The response began late Thursday morning when a resident noticed an object drifting near his yard and went to look closer. He told reporters he initially thought it was trash until he realized it was a person in the water. Fire units reached the location within minutes and removed the woman from the creek behind the Husson Avenue home. Emergency medical personnel attempted life-saving measures but declared her dead shortly after. “I got closer and then I saw it was the body,” said homeowner Leslie Bhagwandin, who said he flagged first responders behind his house as crews staged on the street side. Neighbors lined the sidewalk as police taped off the rear walkway and moved equipment toward the bulkhead behind the property.
Police described the victim only as a 58-year-old woman and said her name would be released after next of kin were notified. Investigators said there were no immediate signs of foul play visible at the scene, but they cautioned that the medical examiner’s review would be decisive. The location sits at the edge of Pugsley Creek, a narrow inlet off the East River that runs behind several homes in Clason Point. Officials said the initial 911 call was logged around 11 a.m. and that the woman was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. The exact time she entered the water remained unknown. Detectives canvassed homes along Husson and Gildersleeve avenues for surveillance footage and asked residents about any disturbance or unusual activity earlier in the morning.
Clason Point’s shoreline includes backyard bulkheads and small docks that back onto the creek, with tidal changes that can reveal or conceal debris along the edge. Residents said the block is typically quiet and that emergency scenes are rare. Several neighbors expressed shock that a body was recovered behind the houses rather than out in the open water. One longtime resident said in an interview that he had lived on the street for more than a decade and had never seen anything like Thursday’s response. The area has experienced occasional flooding during storms, and homeowners noted the narrow distance between their fences and the waterline behind the properties.
Authorities said the medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death, a process that typically includes toxicology and could take days. Police said the investigation remains open while detectives reconstruct the woman’s movements before she was found. No charges have been filed, and police did not release details about clothing, belongings, or whether identification was recovered at the scene. Officials said any update on the woman’s identity or findings from the autopsy would be released after family notifications and once results are confirmed. If additional evidence is developed, detectives could return to the block for follow-up interviews and to collect more video.
By midafternoon Thursday, yellow tape cordoned off the driveway and rear walkway of the Husson Avenue home as officers logged equipment and took photographs. A light wind carried across the creek as a small group of residents watched from their stoops. “Nothing ever happens here,” said neighbor Wilson Pagan, who said he has lived nearby for roughly a decade and had not seen a recovery like this. Another resident said firefighters and police worked quickly to reach the back of the property and then left several hours later after the woman was taken from the scene.
As of Sunday, Dec. 21, authorities said the woman’s identity had not been released and the medical examiner’s ruling was pending. Police said additional information would be provided after family notification and completion of the autopsy.
Author note: Last updated December 21, 2025.