2 kids recovering after plow buries them under snow

NEWBURGH, N.Y. -- New York police believe two boys trapped in a snow pile in the Hudson Valley for several hours after a plow buried them were able to survive thanks to an air pocket in the heavy, wet snow.

The two cousins, ages 11 and 9, were building a snow fort Wednesday night in Newburgh when a plow operator clearing a parking lot unknowingly pushed snow over them.

Authorities said the two left their homes at 6 p.m. to play in the snow in the lot, located near the intersection of Walsh Road and Dixon Street.

When the children did not return home by 10 p.m., family and friends went searching before calling police just prior to 11 p.m.

Patrol officers canvassed the area, interviewed several children from the neighborhood, called in an off-duty police dog and checked several residences. As officers were continuing their search, other officers began to re-interview neighborhood children.

Officer Brandon Rola was able to ascertain that the boys were possibly building a snow fort in the area of The Family Health Center, located several hundred yards from the Kenny Apartments, where they live.

Rola responded to The Family Heath Center, where he found a shovel that was half buried in a large snow bank that was made during the clearing of the parking lot. He grabbed the shovel and dug some of the snow until he observed a small boot.

Officers, family members, community members and Mobile Ambulance personnel assisted in digging out the boys with shovels, as well as their hands.

The boys were conscious and alert, suffering from exposure to the cold. They were pulled from the snow at approximately 2:10 a.m.

Through interviews, it was learned that the boys were digging out a snow fort in the snow bank when a plow truck clearing the parking lot pushed more snow onto the bank. The boys then became trapped underneath the snow.

The snow plow operator would have had no knowledge that the boys were on the other side of the bank.

It is unknown exactly how long the boys were trapped under the snow, but it is estimated to be several hours. The boys were transported to St. Luke's Hospital, where one of the boys remains hospitalized for observation purposes. The other was treated and released.