Clifton firefighters escape serious injury after going over waterfall during rescue

The firefighters were attempting to rescue another group whose boat became stuck in the river.

Matt Trapani and Nick Meidanis

Jun 28, 2023, 8:54 PM

Updated 465 days ago

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Three Clifton firefighters were not seriously injured after their boat went over the Dundee Falls on the Passaic River in the middle of a rescue.
The three firefighters were attempting to rescue three construction workers whose boat had stalled out on the river Wednesday afternoon.
A special New Jersey State Police rescue team had to navigate the wind and helicopters to get to the firefighters in the water.
Officials say that the construction workers were cutting trees along the riverbank when their boat died. The firefighters went out and tried to use a floatation device to help them. The Clifton fire chief says that at some point the boat got caught in the current.
The fireboat went over the falls. One firefighter managed to step off before it went out of control, while another was able to jump out.
The firefighters were all sent home and were a bit shaken but were not seriously hurt. The construction workers also were expected to be OK.
The water from the river was higher than usual due to heavy rain the last few days.