Teens who took kiddie pool over waterfall charged

KEENE, N.H.—Two college students have been charged with reckless conduct for trying to go over a river waterfall in an inflatable pool.

Corey Loonan, 18, of Sandwich, Mass., and Alex Perry, 19, of Westborough, Mass., were charged Friday and released on personal recognizance. They face up to a year in jail and fines of $2,000 if convicted of the misdemeanor.

The Keene State College freshmen were floating down the Ashuelot River on April 18 when they decided to take the pool over the falls. Perry ended up trapped under the falls for at least 10 minutes and had to be rescued by Keene firefighters. Authorities also had to rescue a woman who jumped in to try to save him.

In Rochester, authorities say a 16-year-old boy is lucky to be alive after nearly drowning in the Salmon Falls River on Saturday.

The boy, whom authorities did not name because of his age, and a friend had been crossing the river in a 12-foot aluminum skiff when the boy tried to step out of the boat onto a steep embankment.

He fell, striking his head on a rock, and was knocked unconscious, said Fire Lt. Bruce Barker. The boy's friend and another witness saw what happened and were able to pull the boy out of the water.

"If he had been alone, I feel we would have done a body recovery," Barker said.