Daring river rescue
Published: December 12, 2006
Rescuers braved sub-zero temperatures and dove into the icy Assiniboine River yesterday morning to save a woman submerged in the frigid water.
Emergency crews were called to the underside of the southbound section of the Maryland Bridge at 9:47 a.m. and managed to bring the woman safely ashore.
The dramatic rescue occurred as the woman drew dangerously close to dipping beneath an ice block on the slushy river, said a witness.
John, who declined to give his last name, said the woman was pacing back and forth on the thin ice near large circles of open water, then jumped in when rescuers arrived.
“(She) got very close to being under the ice. (She) was just holding on with one arm to the ice,” said John, who called for help. “I thought she was done (for.)”
He said the woman didn’t appear to respond to paramedic instructions to get out of the water, then resisted initial rescue attempts.
“Five guys then dragged (her) away,” said John. “They were all huddled around (her), then the ambulance came.”
Footprints and large gaps of flowing water were visible along the river yesterday morning as the temperature hovered near -3 C.
SHORT WINDOW
The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service (WFPS) water rescue team, with other emergency workers, managed to pull the woman out about two minutes after she went into the water, said Stephen Sumka, a platoon chief.
Sumka said the crew of 14 people had just minutes to save her from serious injury.
“We had a very short window. Even if you’re in excellent physical health, two to five minutes in the water is very dangerous,” said Sumka. “The water is still cold. It doesn’t matter what kind of condition your body is in … Once you get cold to the core, it is not good for you.”
Sumka said the woman was conscious throughout the ordeal.
“She was in the water for two or three minutes and she was already hypothermic at that point,” said Sumka. “The water is extremely cold.”
Sumka said rescuers used an “ice sled,” a small platoon-like boat about one metre wide with aluminum housing to assist the rescue.
He added the woman’s response to her rescuers may have been linked to disorientation triggered by her physical condition.
“Any person that is in the water this time of year becomes very agitated and frightened and we’re prepared to deal with that in our training,” said Sumka. “It’s a ‘fight or flight’ reaction that we get.”
The woman was taken to hospital in stable condition.
Sumka warns others to learn from the close call and stay off rivers and lakes.
“Stay off the water, ice in particular,” said Sumka. “There is no safe ice on our rivers until the harbour master declares it safe.”
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