Video: Troopers Rescue Teen Stranded in Frigid Salem County Marsh
Three New Jersey State Troopers rescued a 14-year-old boy who was stuck in waist-deep water in a marsh in Salem County late Sunday night.
According to the New Jersey State Police, Sunday at about 11:30 PM, Sgt. Carl Scowcroft, Tpr. Matthew Hess, and Tpr. Thomas Rheault were dispatched after receiving a call about a 14-year-old boy who ran away from home and got stuck in a marsh near Sawmill Road in Alloway Township.
When troopers arrived, according to a statement, they found the boy was trapped, he was breathing slowly and he was unresponsive.
With both cold weather and water to deal with, Sgt. Scowcroft went into the marsh while the other two troopers kept lights on the boy. Scowcroft was able to pull the boy, who was showing signs of hypothermia, out of the muck and he was carried to the shore.
At the time of the rescue, the air temperature was in the upper 20s at nearby Millville Municipal Airport, according to the National Weather Service.
Members of the Alloway Township Fire Rescue squad arrived at the scene and assisted in getting the boy out of the water. The boy was then secured to a backboard and carried up an embankment to a waiting ambulance.
Troopers say the 14-year-old was taken to Salem Memorial Hospital where he was expected to make a full recovery.
Video of the rescue was posted to the New Jersey State Police's Facebook page.