Still Early for most Sconnies.....

[GatorBait]

Rescuers say a man who went ice fishing in Manitowoc County was saved by his cooler.

They say 50-year-old Gerald Koenig of Valders was in the middle of Bullhead Lake in western Manitowoc County Thursday night when he broke through the ice.

Neighbors say they noticed Koenig ice fishing about four o'clock in the afternoon. They say he checked the ice by the shore then ventured out about a quarter mile on to the lake.

"He set up in the middle of the lake and it had just froze over there the day before, that spot where he set up," lake neighbor Kathy Lane said.

Fortunately for Koenig, a last-minute change in dinner plans had Ryan Kuchenbecker's dad grilling supper on his back porch. That's when his dad heard yelling come from the lake at about 8 o'clock.

"And he remembered that earlier, a couple hours before, he saw a guy out fishing on the lake, so he just told my mom that he was just gonna go check and see. And sure enough, he got down there, it was dark out, then but he heard screams for help so he immediately called 911. He told the guy to hold on and that help was coming and on the way."

It was the first time the Valders Fire Department ever responded to an ice rescue.

Rescuers found Koenig more than 1,200 feet off shore, hanging on to a small cooler.

Four firefighters in cold-water rescue suits were sent in to pull the man out of the water. They got him out of the water in 16 minutes.

Officials believe Koenig was in the water for about 45 minutes before emergency crews arrived. He was taken to Theda Clark Medical Center, where he was in good condition Friday.

Kuchenbecker says he admires his father's instinctive response.

"Normally when you hear screaming out here you immediately think, 'Oh, it's snowing, kids are outside playing,' but he immediately thought of the guy that was fishing on the lake, so he had the instinct, 'I should probably go check.'"

Authorities say although the ice was four inches thick at the shoreline it was less than an inch thick farther out with some areas that were still open.

"It's actually very dangerous because you're walking out where someone just fell in. You don't know where the holes are, the soft spots are, where the thin ice is," incident commander Mark Busse said.

Kuchenbecker says after this incident, his dad is planning on putting up signs warning people of thin ice.

[Mike Stark]

wow. 45 minutes in the water. lucky guy.