Two teens survived a subzero night in the Maine woods after their snowmobile got stuck on an ungroomed trail, and were returned to their parents Tuesday morning.
"I am relieved as heck. It's been a long night. I've been worried stiff," Tracy Howard, mother of one of the teens,
told ABC News affiliate WMTW.
Ty Howard-Gotto and Jonah May, both 15, were traveling from the town of Mexico to Howard-Gotto's grandfather's place in Andover when they ran aground just before 10 p.m. When they failed to show up, the family called the police and game wardens, who began a search just after midnight,
CBS News reported.
They tried to soak a sock in gasoline to start a fire, but that proved unsuccessful. The boys said they then walked a great distance looking for shelter, and kept their calm as temperatures continued to drop to 9 degrees below, plus wind chill.
"I was a little scared, started thinking about my mother and that stuff, but Ty kept me in line," said May. "[He] told me we gotta make a fire and push through this."
They eventually came upon a shed near Richardson Lake that had a go-kart with fresh gas in it, which they used to make a fire on the shore.
"Because I had my clothes bag with me. I stuffed my T-shirts, whatever, underwear, as insulation and zipped it up," said Howard-Gotto.
The pair eventually fell asleep in the go-kart for a few hours. When daylight broke over the horizon, they walked to the nearest road, and hitched a ride to grandpa's house.
"I understand the heart of a 15-year-old boy and I understand the adventure," said Lt. Adam Gormley of the Maine Warden Service. "I would consider this to be a pretty inexpensive lesson."
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