Brothers Describe Near Death Plunge into Delaware River

April 8, 2014
They know just how lucky they are to be telling their stories.

April 08--Brothers Joseph and Chris Hoehmann of Matamoras feel fortunate to be alive after a freak accident Sunday tossed their boat and threw them into the icy Delaware River.

They were in a 12-foot aluminum jon boat, a typical river fishing boat with a V-hull and a flat back. They had modified the new 9-horsepower Mercury outboard motor and added stabilizer bars.

"We wanted to take it for a spin," said Joseph, 29. "The river was pretty high."

Leaving from the boat launch across from the Westfall Township building, they traveled straight to the middle of the river and then turned slightly. The stabilizer bars were not adjusted properly, said Chris, 25.

"We were not being reckless. It was just a freak accident," Joseph said.

When the boat turned upriver, the water interacted unexpectedly with a stabilizer bar, causing the front of the boat to flip up in the air about 7 feet and twist.

The brothers were thrown into the water, the boat slapped down into the river and started taking on water.

The engine was still humming and, as the boat sank, it powered away.

Both brothers said they momentarily thought of going after the boat to hit the kill switch on the motor and try to cling to the vessel. But without speaking, both decided they did not have enough time.

Eventually, the boat sank, and the new engine flooded and died.

The contents of the boat that were thrown out when it flipped were scattered on the river surface.

Chris watched as their life jackets -- out of reach -- quickly floated away.

Pins and needles

"As soon as I hit the water, I said, 'Oh my God, this is not happening,'" said Joseph, a former EMT and former Westfall firefighter who had been trained for scuba diving rescues in the Delaware.

The frigid water -- which was about 46 degrees Sunday -- caused muscles to cramp almost instantly.

"It was very painful, like pins and needles," Chris said. "It got worse and worse, almost like someone has cables on your legs and is pulling you down."

They were fully clothed. Chris tried to take his shoes off so he could swim better, but his arms were too tired.

They were about 20 feet from shore, but the fast current was pulling them down river. It didn't seem as if they were getting closer to shore.

"It was still pretty deep. My head started to go under. I totally accepted the fact that we were dead. I just gave up," Joseph said. "As I went down, my foot hit a rock."

He was closer to shore, but too weak to move much more. Joseph stood on the rock and heard his brother yelling for help.

Chris, too, had accepted that he was about to die.

"The water was so murky. We would not have been found," Chris said. "You push yourself until your body gives out, and then there is a sense of calm."

He saw his brother struggling and choking on the water.

Then Chris saw a vehicle on the road, and mustered the energy to yell for help.

Recognized classmate

The driver was headed to his home in Millrift and looked over to the river.

"I happen to look over to where the road is close to the river, and I saw some stuff floating on the river," John Montana said.

Then he saw Chris.

"We sort of locked eyes," Montana said. He heard Chris yell and could tell the men in the water were in distress.

Montana stopped his car, threw open the door and tore off his shirt and hat as he ran down the riverbank into the water.

Chris noticed the shock on his face when the cold gripped Montana's body.

"I'm a fisherman, and I understand about the temperature -- that you only have a short amount of time to get out," Montana said.

While running to the water, Montana recognized Chris as a Delaware Valley High School classmate and called his name.

"He said, 'Chris!' I said, 'Johnny, please get me out.' He realized I was struggling so much. I think he went up to his waist. I was hoping he would not go into shock."

Grateful

The current picked up just a couple hundred yards from the brothers.

"I knew I would get in and out fast enough. I could still plant my feet on the ground. I'm lucky they were not out any farther," Montana said.

The brothers say Montana took each of their hands and pulled them forward, walking them back to shore together.

"I fell to my knees and kind of blacked out for a moment," Joseph said.

They took off their hoodies, which were holding the cold water to their skin, and the fire department pulled up to the shore.

Both brothers say Montana saved their lives.

"I did thank him on the side of river. I want to meet him again and take him out to dinner," Joseph said. "Even though that is a small thing, I want to show some gratitude."

Previous losses

Montana says he is just glad everyone got out safely.

"I didn't want to see anyone get hurt. Anything I could do to stop it -- especially when I saw it was a buddy. It would have been really sad to read a different story," Montana said.

Both brothers were at work Monday, still shaken by the incident.

Chris says he will never go on the river without wearing a life jacket again.

Their mother was also shaken by the river rescue and grateful for the happy ending because, she said, the family has experienced losses in the past.

The brothers' older sister died in a car crash in 2002, and a younger sister died in a house fire in 1995 when the family lived in New York, Joseph explained.

Said their mother, Kelly Hoehmann of Matamoras: "It was really God watching over our lives again this weekend, for sure."

Copyright 2014 - Pocono Record, Stroudsburg, Pa.

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