Woman drowns in diving accident off Rockport

News Release, July 25, 2023

Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman who had difficulty while SCUBA diving off Rockport over the weekend, Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker announced.

Rockport Police were notified late Saturday afternoon of a potential drowning near the Dry Salvages rock mount about two miles offshore northwest of the town.

The victim, Sara Elizabeth Nivens, 40, of South Boston, was assisted back onto the charter boat from which she had begun a dive with her father. The boat later docked at T-Wharf in Rockport.

Nivens was taken to Addison Gilbert Hospital, before being transferred to the Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlington, where she was pronounced deceased on Monday.

The incident is being investigated by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office State Police Detective Unit, the Massachusetts State Police Dive Team and the Rockport Police Department.