SUAMICO (NBC 26) — A new rescue sled is helping Suamico first responders reach people in danger on the ice faster, after a man drowned last winter waiting for help to arrive.
"We needed something that we could deploy faster," said Fire Chief Joe Bertler of the Village of Suamico. He says the department's previous sled, an inflatable, took responders two minutes to prepare.
When every second counts, that's a long time.
Sportsemen's clubs around the area are stepping up to help. Last year, the Green Bay Area Sport Fishermen worked with other clubs to fundraise for Green Bay Metro Fire's thin-ice sled.
Watch the full story by Jessica Goska here:
Club President Jim Pyle says the sport fishermen next plan to help De Pere and first responders on Green Bay's East side secure similar equipment.
"When it comes to our emergency units, anything that we can help make it better and keep them safe, they need to have it," said Pyle. "You never know when you're going to be caught in that situation."
He says the device could have helped save the life of the man who drowned on the bay last year. Bertler agrees.
"We could hear the gentleman crying for help, but, unfortunately, by the time we located him, I mean, it was dark out as well, he succumbed to the water," Bertler recalled of the incident.
Suamico Fire performs about eight ice rescues each winter season, most often when the ice is thin.
The new sled costs $6,000, but its real value can't be measured, according to the fishermen who funded it.
"Once you see it, it's worth it," Pyle said.
