Deputies jump into a very cold Bush River to rescue woman
(Image credit: Google Maps)
Yesterday, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office reported on a heroic cold-water rescue that went down on Friday, December 10. The outside temperatures were in the 40s on Friday when deputies jumped into the Bush River in an effort to save a 25-year-old woman whose car ended up in the river. The water temperatures that day were also in the mid-40s.
At 1:02 p.m., deputies responded to the area of Flying Point Park Marina in Edgewood, Maryland, after a call to check on the wellbeing of the woman, who is not being identified. Upon arrival, they observed her vehicle, on the boat ramp, partially in the water. Deputies attempted to remove the driver, and only occupant, but were unable to get her out before the car completely entered the water.
Once the vehicle was nearly fully submerged, the driver jumped out of the vehicle and into the cold water.
It was at that time, four Harford County Sheriff’s Deputies jumped into action and risked their own safety – and jumped into the frigid waters to attempt a rescue. The four deputies trekked through the waist-high waters to make their way to the woman who was still in the water.
The four Harford County Deputies were identified as Corporal Sanchez, Senior Deputy Mothershed, Deputy First Class Tatum, and Corporal Frederick.
The video below shows Senior Deputy Mothershed bringing the woman to shore.
The woman was transported by local emergency responders to the hospital for treatment of cold weather exposure and for further medical evaluation. No deputies were injured.
Of the heroism displayed that day Sheriff Gahler remarked, “Deputies put on a uniform and go to work every day to make a difference in the lives of citizens. I am proud of the work these men did to act quickly and save a life.”
Personal Anecdote: If you think wading into 40-degree waters isn’t a big deal, I did it once after jumping into my inground pool in Harford County one cold day during the month of March in an attempt to dive to the bottom of the pool and retrieve a concrete paver that had fallen into the water and could possibly be damaging the pool liner. As soon as I hit the water, I’m pretty sure my heart stopped – and I scrambled out of that water immediately. We ended up hiring a scuba diver to retrieve that paver. ~ Rich Webster
After singing his deputies’ praises on their daring water rescue, the Sheriff took the opportunity to do some recruiting…
You can serve the community with us! Accepting Law Enforcement Applications in January! Visit www.harfordsheriff.org for hiring information.
(Source: Harford County Sheriff’s Office)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Follow Richard on Facebook and Twitter
