Oregon Firefighters Rescue Deer From Frozen Pond

What are a fireman’s duties? Put out fires, save people from burning buildings, take down the occasional confused kitty from a tree top?It is all in a day’s work. But when the Oregon firefighters were called to help on December 8, it wasn’t the usual call-out. In fact, someone called the brave firefighters to rescue a deer that had gotten himself stuck in the middle of a frozen pond.

The deer, trapped in the middle of a frozen golf course pond, kept falling when it tried to get up. So firefighters used equipment purchased with a grant from Firehouse Subs to help push the little guy to firmer ground, according to the Sunriver Fire & Rescue Facebook page.

The grant, which firefighters were awarded in the spring, allowed the department to purchase immersion suits and an ice sled. “I was ready to go—I was excited,” firefighter J.J. Johnston told media following the rescue. Johnston can be seen gently nudging the deer to shore in the video that has been viewed almost 300,000 times on Facebook.

When the deer didn’t quite make it to land Johnston had to give it another extra nudge. “I think he was a little tired, or sore,” Johnston said.

The team admits that they were more than excited to test out their brand new equipment. “We’ve been training a little with the ice rescue stuff,” they say. “It’s great to be able to put it to use.” As for the deer? "Deer rescued [sic] and enjoying a cool Sunriver evening!" said the SF&R Facebook page.

Credit: L4262 Sunriver Professional Firefighters

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