WATCH: New Jersey State Police helicopter rescues two firefighters from Passaic River

Police had to rescue a group of firefighters from the Passaic River after they had ventured into the current to help three people.

Clifton Fire Chief Frank Prezioso said that firefighters went out onto the river to rescue three people that were already in the river.

He went on to say that the boat got caught in the current and went over the nearby Dundee Dam. One of the three firefighters jumped from the boat before it went over while two “rode it down.”

Prezioso said that all three had to be pulled from the water, two by a New Jersey State Police helicopter.

The dramatic rescue by the NJSP helicopter was shared live on television. The state police helicopter lowered a first responder to pick up the two men, one at a time and carry them to the safety.

The rescue took multiple passes during which the rescuer swung closer and closer to the stranded firefighters as winds whipped in the area.

The boat is mostly submerged and stranded with just the Clifton Fire Department and the top of the engine visible above the water line, though the firefighters are standing in it safely.

The dam the boat went over, visible in the background of the rescue video is about 20 feet high.

The NJSP posted on Facebook that "Lieutenant Rick Villa, Sergeant First Class Jason Jorgensen, Sergeant Andrew Stephanic, Trooper I Stephen Brown and flight nurse Burke Barnett of Aviation North, along with Trooper II Shamik Songui of T.E.A.M.S. North rescued members of the Clifton Fire Department from the Passaic River."

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: New Jersey State Police helicopter rescues two men from Passaic River