Teenage Boys Rescued After Boat Gets Stuck In Raritan Bay Marsh Sunday Night

SOUTH AMBOY, NJ — A pair of teenage boys were rescued by Sayreville Police, Fire and South Amboy Police Sunday night after their motorboat became stuck in the marsh in Raritan Bay.

Sayreville Police received a 911 call at 6:13 p.m. Sunday that a boat was lost in the marsh, and two people, described as either young men or teens, were aboard it.

It was dark by that time, and South Amboy Police, who assisted, used a drone to locate the boat, said South Amboy Police Capt. Michael Kelly, who operated the drone. He said the drone located the boys within seven minutes; by 6:20 p.m. he had located the boat. The drone has an infrared/thermal camera, night vision and zoom vision.

Sunday night's wind and waves had pushed the boat into the marsh, and it got stuck in shallow water in the reeds and rocks, said the police captain. The two teens had a cell phone on them and they had called 911 for help.

Kelly said it was his understanding the boat had departed from the Sayreville area and got blown into South Amboy. The teens had left from the River Road boat ramp in Sayreville.

The Sayreville Fire Department used one of their Zodiac inflatable rescue boats to get to the boys. It was too shallow to get to them by boat, so firefighters had to wade into the water to rescue them, wearing boots and full-body ice rescue suits, said Kelly. In total, it took two and a half hours for firefighters to get to their location and retrieve the boys.

The two young men were extremely cold from being out there for hours, said Sayreville Fire Chief Rich Masterson. They were evaluated by EMS on the scene and had to be taken to a local hospital to be checked for hypothermia.