Daring Water Rescue At Dusk - Good Work Lakewood Fire Department and Metro Park Rangers

[Jim O'Bryan]

Just before 7pm Lakewood 911 received a phone call that two people had fallen out of their kayak and were trapped in the river. They managed to grab a boom in the river before going into the rapids.


From high above on the Eastern Rim you can see the whole recovery scene.


Lakewood Fire Department inflate their special water rescue craft. One speaks with two girls that helped to call it in.


A Metro Parks Water Rescue Swimmer had gotten to mom and the child.


The boat makes its way to the mother and boy.




While it looks like the boat is running the victims over, it is not.


Special openings allow rescuers to get victims in the boat without lifting them.


A couple minutes later mom is on board too!


They head back to shore.


Everyone back on solid ground!


With that the crews head back to pack up.



Great work Lakewood Fire and Police Departments, and of course Metro Park Rangers!

See all the photos at: http://lakewoodobserver.com/photoblogs/ ... ocky-river
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[Bridget Conant]

Thank goodness for those two young ladies who were willing to help and so fortunate for the mom and child! Glad all are well.

People underestimate that river - it can be deadly.

[Amy Martin]

I'm sorry - but what idiot parent takes their kids on that river in a kayak when we had flooding rains the day/night before? This is total negligence on that mother's part and I hope she realizes how effen lucky she is that she didn't lose her child.

Kayaks are not toys, and Mother Nature is a force to be reckoned with.

Great job, rescuers.

[Bridget Conant]

Exactly, Amy.

The kayak rental place at the boat launch tells kayakers not to go up past the Valley Parkway bridge and this rescue was up past the bridge, but who knows where she launched The kayak.