ALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, NJ – The New Jersey State Police have released bodycam footage from a rescue of a teenager stuck in an Alloway Township marsh.
“Three New Jersey State Troopers rescued a 14-year-old boy who was stuck waist-deep in frigid water in a marsh in Alloway Township, Salem County,” the NJSP said in a statement. “On Sunday, February 21, at approximately 11:28 p.m., Sergeant Carl Scowcroft, Trooper Matthew Hess, and Trooper Thomas Rheault were dispatched to the report of a 14-year-old boy who ran away from his residence and got stuck in a marsh near Sawmill Road. When troopers arrived to the area, they entered the water and discovered the trapped boy, who was breathing slowly and was unresponsive.”
Due to the frigid temperature of the water, Sgt. Scowcroft made a determination that he needed to take immediate action to save the boy’s life, so he quickly made his way through the mud as Troopers Hess and Rheault kept their flashlights trained on the victim. Sgt. Scowcroft pulled the boy out of the marsh and began to carry him towards the shoreline. At the time of the rescue, the victim exhibited signs of hypothermia.
A short time later, members of the Alloway Township Fire Rescue arrived and entered the water to assist. Troopers Rheault and Hess then secured the boy to a backboard and carried him up the embankment. Alloway Township EMS evaluated the victim and transported him to Salem Memorial Hospital where he was expected to make a full recovery.