SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb. 8, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Four people escaped serious injury Monday when they were rescued by firefighters after falling through the ice in Liberty Park.
Salt Lake City Fire Department spokesman Jasen Asay said the incident began around 4:40 p.m. when a 13-year-old girl was walking on the pond ice and it started to give way.
Asay said her brother and a male cousin, both 11, rushed out onto the ice to assist her and started to fall through the ice themselves.
A woman walking her dog witnessed the incident and went out onto the ice to help. She ended up in the icy water as well.
Witnesses on the shore called 911, and rescue crews arrived within minutes.
The two boys were able to climb out onto the shore where they were rushed into an ambulance to warm up and dry off.
The girl and the woman managed to climb onto a small island in the middle of the pond, approximately 100 feet from the shore. SLCFD Water Rescue Crew was able to reach them with an inflatable boat and brought them back to shore, wet and cold, but unhurt.
None of the four needed to be transported to a hospital.
Asay said it is usually people’s first instinct to try and walk out onto ice to try and save others from falling through. However, he said a better plan is to call 911, then attempt to throw ropes or other items to them that they can hold onto.
He said the more people that go onto the ice, such as in this case, the more it is weakened.
Asay said that fire crews can usually be on site rapidly and can carry out a safe rescue that doesn’t put anyone else in jeopardy.
