11-Year-Old Rescued From Lake After Canoe Flips

An 11-year-old boy was rescued from the chilly waters of Colonial Lake by Lawrence Township police and firefighters this evening (Wednesday, April 25) after the canoe in which he and three other boys from Trenton were riding overturned after it passed under the fountain located near the rear of the lake off Lake Drive.

The boys had allegedly stolen the canoe from the backyard of a home on Colonial Lake Drive, according to police.

After being plucked from the water and brought to the safety of shore in a fire company boat, the 11-year-old was rushed via ambulance to Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton to be treated for possible hypothermia, police said.

Township police Sgt. Michael Yeh said it was just after 7:10 p.m. when the first of several 911 calls was received.

The first caller reported only that children were swimming in the lake. That was worrisome enough, Yeh said, because the water is so cold and swimming in the lake is not allowed.

But as officers were en route, additional calls came in reporting a child was in the water clinging to the side of a flipped canoe. That immediately prompted officers to speed up their response and also dispatch a full water rescue assignment from the township’s three volunteer fire companies, he said.  

Ted Clemens, who was among a group of retired friends fishing at the lake, witnessed the drama unfold.

 “They got the boat from over there, under the trees, and came across the lake. When they got to this side, they got all tangled in a fishing line. They didn’t know how to paddle. They went back to back out, and when they did, they went under the [fountain],” he said.

“They got scared and turned the canoe over. It flipped over,” he continued. “The others swam to shore, but the other one couldn’t swim. We yelled to him to get back on the boat because he was starting to go under. We’d told him we’d call the police. He stayed on the boat.”

“They did a good job swimming with their shoes on,” one of the other men in the group of anglers said. “They stood there a few minutes but took off when they heard the sirens. They heard the fire engines coming and got scared, I guess.”

When police arrived on the scene, “we observed one male holding on to an overturned canoe in the middle of the lake near the fountain,” Yeh said. He estimated that the 11-year-old was about 150 feet from shore.

“All the officers wanted to strip down and go in after the kid,” Yeh said. “But he was stable and hanging one. If the kid had looked like he was in more distress or was becoming unstable, we would have immediately swam out to him. We didn’t want to make things more complicated [by putting someone else in the water].

“The boat from Lawrence Road Fire Co. arrived,” Yeh continued. “Myself and [fire Capt.] Ryan Dlabik paddled out to the juvenile and pulled him into the boat.”

During the brief ride back to shore in the fire company boat, Yeh said he asked the juvenile if he was hurt and how many others had been in the canoe with him.

“He said he was cold. He said there had been three with him and they’d all gotten out,” Yeh said.

Firefighters Kyle Collins and Charles Commini Jr. used the fire company boat to retrieve the canoe from the lake.

The canoe was later returned by police to the Colonial Lake Drive property from which the boys had allegedly stolen it. A bike found near where the canoe had been was taken into custody as possible evidence by police.

Officer Shaun Sexton and Detective James Smith interviewed the 11-year-old at the hospital and learned the identities of the other three boys. They located all three, confirming that they were safe at their respective homes in Trenton.

“Our biggest concern tonight was making sure everyone was safe and accounted for,” township police Sgt. Gary Schenck said. While witnesses reported seeing the other three boys get out of the lake, police wanted to make sure they had actually gotten home and were not suffering any ill-effects from being in the cold water, he said.

The investigation into the theft of the canoe is continuing and no charges have been filed at this time against the boys, he said.