Local News

Coast Guard, dive team called in when truck rolls from boat ramp into Merrimack River

The pickup truck drifted several yards offshore after the driver apparently got out and forgot to put it in park.

A pickup truck drifts several yards offshore in the Merrimack River after it rolled into the water at the boat ramp near Bridge and Church streets on Sunday night. Courtesy West Newbury Fire and Police Departments

By Lindsay Shachnow

August 13, 2024

1 minute to read

A truck left on a boat ramp in West Newbury rolled into the Merrimack River on Sunday night, police say.

At 10:39 p.m., the West Newbury Police and Fire Departments were dispatched to the boat ramp at Church and Bridge streets to respond to a report of a truck driving into the water, according to a statement from the West Newbury Police Department.

The driver was not in the vehicle at the time, authorities said.

A preliminary investigation found that the truck’s driver forgot to put the vehicle in park at the boat ramp, the statement said.

The truck fell into the water and drifted several yards offshore.

The West Newbury Police and Fire departments were assisted by Merrimac Police, the West Newbury Harbormaster, the Haverhill Harbormaster, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Beverly Dive Team, according to the department.

There were no reported injuries as a result of the incident.