Fort Collins Man, Dog, Rescued After Falling Through Ice

A Fort Collins man and his dog were rescued from an icy plunge in a local lake last week by a Fort Collins forestry worker who happened to be in the right place at the right time with the right set of skills.

That's according to a post on the Fort Collins Police Services Facebook page. According to the post, the incident started when the man's dog ran out onto the ice and the dog's owner went out on the ice to get him.

But things took a dangerous turn when both man and dog fell through the ice into the frigid waters of the lake. the forestry technician, identified by police only as "Rafael' heard a witness yelling for help. Rafael ran 1/4 mile to the scene of the situation and was able to get the man and his dog out of the water safely.

It was lucky that he was nearby, as he had ice water rescue experience as a volunteer member of the Boulder County Search and Rescue team. Because of that, he was able to take steps to prevent hypothermia before first responders arrived.

According to the post, the "outcome could have been much different" had Rafael not responded to the situation so quickly.