TOPSHAM
Topsham firefighters rescued a 13-year-old boy who had wandered onto a small island in the Androscoggin River Monday night.
The boy had wandered from his house off Foreside Road Monday afternoon. According to Topsham Fire Chief Christopher McLaughlin, he wandered across the river during low tide and got lost or misdirected on Mustard Island. Someone in Brunswick near the Bay Bridge landing heard him yelling and called for help at around 6 p.m.
The caller was able to keep an eye on the boy as crews responded by boat. Firefighters retrieved him and returned him to his caretaker in Topsham.
“Luckily someone did hear him because there’s not a lot of houses in the area, and luckily he yelled for help,” McLaughlin said.
The water is still extremely cold this time of year and the boy was already wet so had he been trapped on the island overnight, “it would have been a long night.”