Fire officials in St. Albert, Alta. are urging residents to stay off the ice after a series of close calls this month, one of which involved a young man jumping into a freezing pond to rescue his dog.
In a popular video recorded by CTV Edmonton on Saturday, Duncan MacIver can be seen swimming through the cold water of an icy pond near an off-leash dog park to save his dog Cosmo that had fallen through the thin ice. After a few tense moments, MacIver was able to make it safely back to shore with his dog.
āItās a split second thing,ā MacIver said. āYouāre not just going to let him die, right?ā
And heās not the only one who would take that kind of a risk for their pet. Simon Chance told CTV Edmonton on Monday that he would have gone into that same frigid pond if his dog Asia was in trouble. He said his dog fell through the pondās ice on the weekend while it was chasing a goose.
āI didnāt have to go in for her because she came back the way she went out,ā Chance said. āOn the way back she fell through, not all the way through, just up to her shoulders.ā
Not all pets are as lucky as Asia and Cosmo, however. The St. Albert Fire Departmentās acting lieutenant Gregg Bauwens said a dog was sucked under by the current after it fell through the ice at Terwillegar Park last week. Unfortunately, the current was just too strong in that larger body of water and they were unable to rescue it, he said.
āThe waterās running under the ice and the water current would drag you under the ice,ā Bauwens said. āOnce that happens, you have no real chance of a good result.ā
Although he applauded MacIverās bravery for going in after Cosmo, Bauwens said the outcome could have been much worse.
āThe problem with that gentleman is, if it would have went bad, we wouldnāt have went for his dog first, we would have went for him,ā he explained.
Bauwens said, any time a pet or a loved one falls through the ice, itās always better to call for help instead.
āMost of the fatalities involved with ice water rescues involve people actually going in after their pets or children,ā he said.
Fire officials in St. Albert told CTV Edmonton on Saturday they had received three calls for ice rescues in as many days.
āThis year itās just been that bit of an anomaly. I donāt know why,ā fire prevention and safety officer Les David Mroz said.
Despite the safety warnings from emergency officials, Chance said he thinks pet owners such as MacIver would still go onto the ice in the future if it meant rescuing their petās life.
āIf it happened to him [MacIver] again, what do you think would happen?ā Chance asked. āWhat do you think heād do? Heād go in!ā
With files from CTV Edmonton
