Duck Boat tour operator rescues baby, father who fell into river

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A baby fell into the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts, but luckily a Duck Boat tour operator was nearby.

State troopers said the child, who was under the age of 2, fell into the river after he squeezed through the railing, WFXT reported. The child’s father jumped in to rescue him.

But a passing Duck Boat — an amphibious watercraft popular with tourists in Boston — scooped the father and son up, dropping them off at a dock nearby.

The boat Olga Ironsides was on a training run so the only people on board were Mike Rosario and Kevin O’Neill.

“I was doing my loop and when I turned back around Kevin noticed a group of people waving to us,” Rosario told WFXT. “And then he noticed a man in the water and that’s when we realized somebody fell in.”

Rosario said the father was holding on to his son, while also holding onto a retaining wall. First responders had tried to lower a life ring down to them.

“So there’s like little slots in the rocks,” Rosario said. “So Dad was holding on there while he was holding the child.”

Rosario got the boat in a safe spot, while O’Neill was at the back of the boat and lowered the ladder.

“And then I just walked down a few steps into the water,” he said -- close enough to take the baby from his Dad’s arm and bring him aboard,” O’Neill said.

“I was thinking, just hold on to this kid and totally concentrate on just getting him up on the duck boat safe. And I was also saying, you’re okay, you’re okay. I don’t have any kids of my own and I’m not very good with babies, but because of the adrenaline I wasn’t thinking about any of that.”

First responders checked out the pair, and the little boy was taken to an area hospital as a precaution.

The CEO of the boat tour company said their training was at the right place and the right time.

“Both are valued employees, even before this rescue,” Cindy Brown, Boston Duck Tours CEO, told WFXT. “Mike and Kevin have been outstanding team members at Boston Duck Tours for many years. I’m thankful that the training they have received, along with very lucky timing, put them in a position to help save this father and child. I could not be prouder of their quick thinking and smart actions.”

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