Sled goes down on Coon Lake

[DTro]

From KARE 11:

Anoka County Sheriff Deputies say a man survived frigid temperatures, stuck in the middle of Coon Lake for at least 20 minutes Sunday afternoon.

"The guy was yelling, c'mon hurry up, I'm not going to make it much longer," said eyewitness Dane Goldeman said. Goldeman and several others tried to push a boat out to the man 75 yards off shore. They tried to navigate the ice with pitchforks, but only made it 6 feet out before the ice began to give way and crack. "He struggled for awhile then slowed down, which really got scary because we didn't know what was going on," Goldeman explained.

Two Anoka County Deputies arrived with Mustang Survivor Suits. They are bright yellow, insulated water suits that are buoyant. The deputies crawled out on their bellies, reaching the man as he was slowly trying to tread water. "They were able to get in the water with the victim and help maintain him above water," Anoka Co. Sgt. David Wiley said. East Bethel Fire Crews used an inflatable raft to pull the man to shore by rope. He was conscious and alert. "He's very lucky, very lucky," Wiley added.

Another deputy that helping pull the man to shore fell through the ice, he was up to his chest in water, and was quickly pulled back to shore. "The ice just isn't safe to go on yet. The ice that was out there now is very slushy, it's not solid, it is not clear ice. It is just not adequate," Wiley warns.

[Shack]

Every year, someone on Coon goes down.

At least he is safe.

[Carp-fisher]

The predictability of stupidity is inevitable.

[Powerstroke]

I understand that ice forms early here because I lived near there, but I can't understand the need to be the first one out there. People went through the ice on foot only last weekend and now someone is out there on a sled?!?

The ice in the metro is not safe!! Even the lakes I know of that had 3-4" of ice before the storm are showing slush now due to the snow load.

Use extreme caution

[mojocatt]

I'm not so sure on stupidity, maybe a lack of judgement though.

Hey, it's good he is okay though. My best wishes for his speedy recovery, and additional caution in the future .

Yeah, ice not good, ice not predictable. But the temps for the coming week are very promising for the up coming weekend though.

[deadminnowcatcher]

the man made a mistake and i am sure will learn from it. people make mistakes- no need to belittle him. Unless u r one that has never made a mistake. If that is the case i would like to meet u

[Ebiz]

I've never been wrong - well except for that one time when I thought I have been wrong

Seriously though - at least no one was hurt or worse, hopefully this will help bring attention to early ice caution and prevent a similar thing from happening elsewhere.

[TroyMcClure]

Quote:

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the man made a mistake and i am sure will learn from it. people make mistakes- no need to belittle him. Unless u r one that has never made a mistake. If that is the case i would like to meet u

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I beg to differ. Apparently your dad never taught you humility. What good was making a mistake when you were a kid without your family ribbing you for the rest of your life?? I get ridiculed for things I was too young to remember, but apparently I learned my lesson.

[rockman]

If this guy wasn't, I betcha he was wishin' he had purchased, and was wearing a set of parka and bibs from Arctic Armor.He was fortunate to get rescued in that 20 minute time span, but what if he hadn't? Arctic Armor may be the equalizer to getting out after going in, but doesn't erase the reality of human stupidity.

[HNTNBUX]

I am happy that the person that went down in Coon Lake was able to be rescued while he was still able to hold on. I am sure every minute that went by in that freezing cold water was frightening and painful.

While ordinary citizens risked their lives on dangerous ice to save him, their efforts were not successful. Do you think this person thought of the five pages of critical comments directed at the last rescue operation on Coon Lake? Do you suppose he was praying, hoping, or wishing that the rescue personnel were going as fast as they could? Or more likely if he is like several members of this site, those rescue personnel better be here in the next thirty seconds without driving over the speed limit, going through red lights, stop signs, or creating a wake in their hovercraft.

When someone is in this type of ordeal their only thought is I need help now! For those of you sitting at a light, stop sign or in traffic watching rescue personnel disregard traffic control devices or otherwise "driving recklessly" think of the victim anxiously awaiting their arrival.

Do rescue personnel make mistakes? Absolutely! Did this guy make a mistake and endager several other people? Absolutely! Why then is everyone quick to say he only made a mistake, everyone makes mistakes. But when a mistake is made by rescue personnel people lined up to cast stones.

No one is perfect, but when you need help, know that someone is coming to help you, imperfections and all.

Theres my $.02.

[hanson]

HNTNBUX-

Totally agree. Nice post!

[chris63]

Well said!!It's the Minnesota Creed-"Monday morning quarterbacking!" c63

[Shack]

I would not go as far as to call this guy “stupid”, more like an “adrenalin junky” comes to mind. He could have been a lawyer or a doctor, but loved the thrill of flying around on thin ice.

I can see how some people could call this man stupid. People who do not push life to the edge, would not know what it is like. Now, those people who do not push life to the edge, are sitting a home right now, nice and warm, no bad memories and amounting emergency bills starting to pile up.

I would not want to be in this guys place for nothing. I am glad he is all right, but I also think of the “other possibilities” and “consequences” of his actions. For instance, the life or limb that could have been lost on a child that was in need of a couple minutes of an EMT time because of a natural life or death situation. With EMT’s and Sheriff’s involved and at this location, some other person or child might have been possibly saved, that was in a situation beyond their control.

This instance of this snowmobiler going threw the ice, can be viewed in many ways. I guess if calling this guy “stupid”, helps to keep someone reading this thread out of harms way, more power to this action. By reading this post, it sure would make me think twice before heading out on Coon tonight to pull laps around lake with the needle buried.

As far as the hover craft incident with the sheriff, that situation compared to this one is like apple and oranges. I am sure after last weeks occurrence on Coon, emergency personal where on a much higher alert. Maybe not. They are on high alert all the time. At least they did not “wake and bake” him with hover craft . Just joking, I had to take that shot. I know it was bad, but I had to say it. LOL.

P.S.

They are “Red lining” the Rum River all ready. I seen tracks in Isanti area. Crazy fools.

[rockman]

I am,for one,just as happy as the next guy,including yourself that this gentleman was rescued,and did not perish.Maybe you feel that belaboring the supposed 'mistake' of this individual is counterproductive, in lieu of his need for emergency services/rescue.I get that.But the fact is there are quite a few firefighters.law enforcement officers,paramedics,and maybe a former reserve deputy like myself on this HSOforum/forum that are not going to pull punches when it comes to calling an action like what this guy did stupid, or a mistake.As far as the recent incident on Coon Lake,I have trained in and driven a resuce hovercraft as the Anoka County deputies were using that day to rescue the dog.Driving those crafts is difficult at best, with not being able to stop on a dime.Couple that with the adrenaline rush of being on a code 3 call such as that, and things do happen.Any of the previously listed personnel in the EMS field will tell you that incidents like this are preventable,unneccessary, and can take a toll in many ways on the rescuers.It is part of the job to go and get it done when a rescue is at hand,but the firemen ,cops,EMT's,Paramedics will tell you it is a bit aggravating to have to put it all on the line because some guy was being stupid.That is the point some are trying to make without really saying it.I may open the proverbial can of worms here,but I can't be quiet on this one after being chastised even a little bit for calling the guy out for being stupid.Everyone is obviously entitled to their own opinion,but reckless actions that put rescuers at risk are just plain selfish.Just for clarification,is it my understanding this guy was on a snowmobile? If so, it solidifies my opinion even more so.

[deadminnowcatcher]

If we were to label this guy as stupid we could put most of us in that same catagory. No ice is ever 100 perscent safe so to ever go on ice is not the safest thing in the world to do. And you are taking a chance. With that said you minimize your chances by taking every precaution. This topic could have started as a reminder that the ice is still very thin and this is proof of that. To call the man stupid turns the post into a negative post which i think we should not do here. This site is to exchange info not ridicule people. keep your posts positive and have a god day

[Carp-fisher]

Quote:

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I would not go as far as to call this guy “stupid”, more like an “adrenalin junky” comes to mind. He could have been a lawyer or a doctor, but loved the thrill of flying around on thin ice.

I can see how some people could call this man stupid. People who do not push life to the edge, would not know what it is like. Now, those people who do not push life to the edge, are sitting a home right now, nice and warm, no bad memories and amounting emergency bills starting to pile up.

I would not want to be in this guys place for nothing. I am glad he is all right, but I also think of the “other possibilities” and “consequences” of his actions. For instance, the life or limb that could have been lost on a child that was in need of a couple minutes of an EMT time because of a natural life or death situation. With EMT’s and Sheriff’s involved and at this location, some other person or child might have been possibly saved, that was in a situation beyond their control.

This instance of this snowmobiler going threw the ice, can be viewed in many ways. I guess if calling this guy “stupid”, helps to keep someone reading this thread out of harms way, more power to this action. By reading this post, it sure would make me think twice before heading out on Coon tonight to pull laps around lake with the needle buried.

As far as the hover craft incident with the sheriff, that situation compared to this one is like apple and oranges. I am sure after last weeks occurrence on Coon, emergency personal where on a much higher alert. Maybe not. They are on high alert all the time. At least they did not “wake and bake” him with hover craft

. Just joking, I had to take that shot. I know it was bad, but I had to say it. LOL.

P.S.

They are “Red lining” the Rum River all ready. I seen tracks in Isanti area. Crazy fools.

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I didn't call the man stupid. I said that stupidity is predictable. The smartest man on earth does stupid things on occasion as we all do. I'm thankful the fellow made it out safely. I'm even more thankful that we have public servants who would put their own lives at risk to save our keisters when we do dumba$$ stuff...

[Shack]

Quote:

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I would not go as far as to call this guy “stupid”

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The more and more I think about it, I would almost say he is .