Camper Faces Underage Drinking Charges After Woods Rescue

A group of underage drinkers allegedly camping on the far side of Gravelly Pond on Tuesday night prompted the Fire Department to be called out because one of the partygoers had to be carried out of the woods.

The first call came in to police at 6:27 p.m. and the rescue lasted until past 8 p.m.

Shawn Morse, 17, of 639 Essex St. in Beverly will face charges in connection to the incident. He was arrested by Officer Michael Girolimon and was charged with being a minor in possession of alcohol, furnishing alcohol to a minor and possession of a Class C drug (hasish). He was not injured and was released on personal recognizance and scheduled to be arraigned at Ipswich District Court in Newburyport on Thursday.

The campers were discovered by Manchester-by-the-Sea Police on routine patrol, who looked across the pond and saw them. The pond is off Chebacco Road in .

While the pond is part of the public water supply for the town of Manchester-by-the-Sea, it is in the town of Hamilton and Hamilton police were called once the campers were spotted.

In all, seven minors were out in the woods camping and allegedly drinking, said Hamilton Police Lt. Scott Janes, a department spokesman.

It is yet to be determined whether anyone else at the campsite, beside Morse, will be charged, Janes said.

The other partygoers were all local residents, Janes said.

“They’re all from the area,” he said.

One of the campers could not get out of the woods on their own and the was called. Janes said the police department's ATV was also used.

At one point, Hamilton firefighters considered rescuing the juvenile by bring them back across the pond in a boat versus walking around but opted against that. The person who was rescued was identified by the Salem News as an 18-year-old male who was unconscious and vomiting blood as a result of alcohol poisoning.

The rescue also prompted the interest of at least two Boston television stations. One neighbor said they saw a WFXT-TV news truck at the scene and a producer for WHDH-TV news also called Hamilton-Wenham Patch to inquire what was going on.

In addition to help from the Hamilton Fire Department and Manchester-by-the-Sea Police, Hamilton Police Officers Jeff Cross and Sgt. Stephen Walsh also assisted at the incident.