AMERICAN FALLS — Three duck hunters from Pocatello had a cold swim and a close call early Saturday morning when their boat sank in the Snake River near Massacre Rocks State Park.

    The Power County Sheriff's office received a 911 call from one of the male hunters about 7:03 a.m. Search and Rescue and ambulance crews responded along with Power County deputies. After their boat sank, the three men, all in their late 20s and early 30s, swam to the north shore of the river across from the Massacre Rocks boat ramp, according to Deputy Gary Krell.

    “It was an awful cold boat trip,” Krell said.

    The sheriff's deputy said the water was calm and there wasn't much of a current which worked in the men's favor. He also noted that the warmer weather helped.

    “It think they were pretty lucky,” Krell said. “They had a cell phone that didn't get damaged.”

    Although the men were cold, none of them had to be transported for treatment of hypothermia after the rescue crew transported them across the river to the Interstate 86 side. The Search and Rescue team remained on the scene until it recovered the 16-foot aluminum boat and some of the men's gear.