KAMLOOPS — Kamloops firefighters rushed to Pioneer Park this afternoon after a man fell through the ice on the South Thompson River.
Kamloops Fire Rescue was called around 1:15 requesting ice rescue.
The man had apparently gone out on the ice to retrieve his dogs who had gone into the water.
When KFR arrived on scene, the man had already been pulled out of the frigid waters with assistance from some bystanders.
“Upon arrival, the patient was out of the ice, conscious and walking,” said KFR Capt. Sheldon Guertin. “At that time, we started to treat him for hypothermia.”
Once the man was loaded into the ambulance, firefighters and a bylaw officer continued to try to retrieve one of the dogs.
KFR is reminding the public never to attempt to rescue their pets or anyone else by themselves.
“We recommend that you don’t make an attempt at rescuing anybody out of the ice, unless you ahve the appropriate training,” said Guertin. “What you’re doing is you’re creating that potential for us to have two people or three people that we have to rescue if you do make attempts to save somebody.”
“Not only for your pets, but for people too, you shouldn’t be out on the ice right now. You can’t see what’s under the snow, and that ice, if the current is running through that area, can be very thin.”
