A Boy Scout troop in Yuma, Arizona, was rescued by Marines after getting stranded while canoeing up the Colorado River on Sunday, Oct. 19, according to Military Times.
The 28 children and four chaperones traveling in 16 canoes had been lost for hours, attempting to navigate the difficult terrain. A call was placed to the Yuma police in the mid-afternoon, expressing concern about the group's location after they did not make it to their check-in point in a timely fashion, reported Fox News.
Police were not able to find the missing group before nightfall. Knowing that the impending darkness would make their task nearly impossible, officers placed a call for backup to the Marine Corps Air Station Yuma. These servicemembers are one of the only resources in the area equipped with night-vision gear.
According to Military Times, it was only minutes before the Marines assembled in helicopters to search for the Boy Scouts. After flying over the target area using night-vision goggles, the rescue team was able to easily spot the missing party. They had swerved away from the course and were stranded in a small clearing. After establishing that nobody in the group was injured, officials identified an escape route and helped guide the Scouts out of their remote location, back to the main river.