An 11-year-old boy had the scare of his life on when he fell through the ice on a pond in Springfield Park at around 3 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 13.
Police report that a 14-year-old boy tried to help him by sliding a rescue ladder toward him, but the youngster was unable to grab hold of it, before the 14-year-old fell into shallower water. A group of kids ran to a nearby firehouse of Engine Company 311 and Ladder Company 158 at 145-50 Springfield Blvd. and alerted the firefighters to what was happening in the park. A dozen of them, known as the Swampdogs, ran toward the park. Probationary FDNY Firefighter Shaun McMahon had been designated “Rescue Swimmer 1” during drills earlier in the day, donned a cold-water suit and was the first one onto the ice.
“About halfway out onto the ice, the ice gave way, and I went into the water,” the probie said. “It was definitely cold, but I mean all I really had thoughts of was getting to this kid, because regardless of if I was cold or not, he was even colder. I just knew I had to get out there. I had to secure him so he doesn’t go underwater.”
When McMahon reached the youngster, he tried to calm him down.
“Once I got to the patient I kind of talked to him, told him we’re here, we got you, everything’s going to be okay,” McMahon said. “And then I got caught on the ice.”
At that point, McMahon said his partner, FDNY Firefighter Tom Hanley, who was right behind him, used a tool and his fists to break the ice allowing McManus to get back onto the ice shelf. From there, McManus and Hanley were able to pull the youngster onto the ice shelf and then brought him to shore. The other Swampdogs pulled the 14-year-old would-be rescuer from the water closer to the shore, where he was wrapped in blankets and did not need to be hospitalized. EMS transported the 11-year-old boy to Northwell Long Island Jewish Valley Stream where he was listed in stable condition.
“Just today, our water rescue unit was here training the members on ice rescue, and just today they received that drill on ice rescue,” FDNY Deputy Assistant Chief Tim Keenan told reporters later in the Swampdog’s firehouse. “We haven’t seen a long extended cold weather spell like we’ve had here the last couple of weeks in New York City in quite a long time.”
A week earlier, the FDNY and the NYPD rescued three 22-year-old men who walked onto the ice on Jamaica Bay off Far Rockaway and fell in when the ice gave way on Feb. 6.
“We’ve been doing a lot of public messaging about the dangers of going out on the ice,” Keenan said. “No ice is safe ice and especially now that it’s warming up, it’s even more of a dangerous situation for the fire department.”
