Teen Survive Maine - Two Rhode Island teens have survived spending the night alone in below-zero temperatures in the woods of western Maine where their snowmobile got stuck in deep snow.
According to the Maine Warden Service, on Monday around 7 :30 p.m. Ty Howard-Gotto and his friend Jonah May, both 15, were traveling from Mexico to Howard to visit Gotto's grandfather's camp located in Andover, 15 miles away.
The family called the authorities for assistance after the boys did not show up by 10 p.m. as expected. Game wardens responded to the distress call, and began a searching for the boys by midnight.
Reports indicate that around 10 a.m. Tuesday, the boys were found safe, cold and hungry in Township C, located just outside Andover.
"Ty and his friend got stuck on sled (and) found a security shed," Ty's mother, Tracy Howard posted on her Facebook page. "They started a fire to keep warm, then walked out to get a ride this morning."
Authorities say the boys crossed Devils Den Road after taking a wrong turn on their way to Gotto's grandfather's camp and their snowmobiles got stuck halfway between Devil's Den Road and the Black Cat Road, just below Richardson Lake.
Reports indicate that the boys started walking after they tried to start a fire by soaking a sock in gasoline and it failed.
They walked quite a distance from Black Cat Road down to the shores of Richardson Lake, where they found a shed on the shores of the lake and a go-cart that contained fresh gas.
They made a fire to keep warm and afterwards slept in the go-cart till dawn. In the morning Gotto and May walked all the way to the South Arm Road across the south end of Richardson Lake.
On the way they were picked up by an unidentified driver who took them to Phil Howard, Gotto's grandfather.
Authorities say the boys are fortunate to have survived the freezing weather conditions. Temperatures dipped to 9 degrees below zero and the winds reached 25 below in the region where the boys spent the night.
