MANTUA, Utah – Dec. 2, 2015 (Gephardt Daily) — Animal rights organization PETA has given an award to the police department which came to the rescue Sunday morning after a woman fell through the ice on the Mantua Reservoir while trying to retrieve one of her dogs.
PETA said officer Brad Nelson from Mantua Police Department risked his life by walking out on the ice to get a water-rescue device to Rebecca Peterson, who lifted her dog to safety before climbing out of the water herself.
Peterson, from Heber City, had to be treated for hypothermia after after she fell through the ice.
Peterson, 32, was walking her two dogs in a remote area on the east side of the reservoir about 9 a.m. when one dog ran far out onto the ice and fell through. The woman followed, trying to save her pet, and also fell through the ice and into the frigid water.
That’s when her good luck started, according to trooper Nelson, a part-time employee of the Mantua Police Department.
“Someone who was doing a check for the water department was driving by,” Nelson told Gephardt Daily. “It was an access road that was not open to the public, so not many people could have been driving by. Someone else walking could have seen her, but how many people take a walk when it’s 10 degrees?”
The worker called 911, and tried to rescue Peterson, but couldn’t reach her. Dispatch sent out Nelson, who used a rescue device that’s wrapped in rope and thrown like a flying disk. Extended to its full 200 or so feet, the rope still fell short of reaching the woman.
So Nelson stepped out onto the thin ice.
“I could feel it cracking under my feet,” he said. “It was probably dangerous, but I didn’t think about it at the time. I just did what anyone would have done in the same situation.”
When Nelson had walked about 30 feet onto the ice, he again threw the rope device. The woman was able to grab the line, and Nelson pulled her in. Her dog swam behind her as her body broke the ice.
“She was lucky,” Nelson said, of the timing. “When I arrived, she had her body pulled out part way onto the ice. By the time she grabbed the rope, her face was barely out of the water. I’m not sure how much longer she could have kept her head above water.”
Mantua Police Chief Mike Johnson estimated Peterson would have lasted 5 minutes or less before she went under. “The water in that area is 20 to 30 feet deep,” Nelson said.
Peterson was wrapped in a blanket, and waited in a warm police car until an ambulance arrived to take her to a Brigham City hospital, Nelson said. Peterson’s dogs were cared for at the home of a volunteer fireman who lived nearby. After she was released from the hospital, she picked up her dogs, Nelson said.
“I’m just glad she is alive,” Nelson said. “At the end of the day, that’s what matters.”
“Thanks to these compassionate and courageous officers, this woman and her two beloved dogs survived their life-threatening ordeal and made it home, safe and sound,” said PETA senior director Colleen O’Brien. “PETA hopes this story will inspire others to come to the aid of animals in need.”
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—reminds all dog guardians to keep their animal companions near them on walks with a leash and a comfortable, secure harness and to keep a close eye on animals when they’re outdoors.
