You find yourself near a frozen pond and suddenly you hear a cry for help. Someone fell into the frozen water. What are you doing? The first instinct is to run towards the victim to save her, but this behavior could make you get involved in the accident and find yourself both helpless. Follow these instructions to save the person who fell in the water, and at the same time protect your own safety.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Get the Victim Out
Step 1. Don't run on ice
Many of the rescuers find themselves victims because they fall into the water themselves. You should avoid approaching the ice hole unless the victim is unconscious or there is an imminent danger of drowning due to his weakness or inability to swim. If you have to do it as a last resort, then don't run or walk, but crawl on all fours to minimize the impact of your weight on the ice.
Step 2. Call for help
Contact the national emergency number (911 in the United States and Canada, 999 in the United Kingdom and 112 in the rest of Europe), or the emergency services in your area, to request the intervention of professionals and paramedics. You have to do this very quickly and never leave the victim for any reason. If you waste time on the phone instead of looking after her, the consequences could be disastrous.
Step 3. Tell the victim to stay calm
If he keeps his concentration and does not lose consciousness, there is a better chance that he will be able to go out without physical help. Try to reassure her, tell her that you know what to do and that you will reach her if necessary. Remind her that while she floats you have plenty of time to spare. The victim will have a "thermal shock" in the first 1-3 minutes, during which he will tend to hyperventilate, so it is important that the head remains out of the water.
Encourage her to control her breathing and keep calm. She's likely hyperventilating, so tell her to take long, deep breaths, sucking with her lips
Step 4. Give her the instructions to exit
Tell her to swim to the edge of the ice and use her elbows to partially lift herself out of the water. Tell her to go in the direction she came from, as the ice, up to that point, was resistant. The weight of the soaked clothes will make it impossible for her to get completely out of the water but the main goal is that she clings to the edge, so not to allow her to lose precious energy in this attempt.
- If the victim has a sharp object with them to use as an ice ax, encourage them to use it to anchor themselves to the ice.
- Order him to raise his legs backwards so as to assume a position as horizontal as possible while trying to drag himself out of the water with his upper body. He should kick as if he were swimming and come out of the hole on his stomach. If he puts too much force on his arms to lift himself, there is a greater chance that he will break the ice again.
- Once out of the water, it should roll away completely away, to minimize the impact of its weight on the ice.
Method 2 of 3: Get the Victim Out
Step 1. Throw a long object at the victim
If she can't get out on her own and help hasn't arrived yet, you should hand her something she can hold onto, such as a ski pole, a rope, a tree branch or even a long scarf. Reaching the person with a long object will keep you safe. Once the victim has grabbed the object, he must cling as best he can or, if it is a rope, wrap it around the body.
- To increase your chances of success, you should always carry a rope or long stick with you when you decide to go on the ice.
- Grab a short, hockey stick, extension cord, or any other long, sturdy item you can find.
- Since the victim's cold hands may not be strong enough to grab a straight object, tie a loop (not a slipknot, preferably a windward knot) at the end of the rope and tell her to slip her arms through it and fold them so that the ring fasten in the crook of the elbows. Alternatively, the victim can pass the ring around the torso and fix it under the armpits.
Step 2. If you don't have an object long enough, throw it a sled
A sled, a lifebuoy tied to a rope or any other object that the person can cling to is better than nothing.
Step 3. Row to the victim if you have no items
If there is a light boat nearby, push it to the edge of the hole, jump into it and retrieve the victim, taking care not to overturn it. Attach the boat to a rope so other rescuers can drag you ashore.
Step 4. Form a human chain if necessary
If you have nothing available, but there are a few people, you can try this rescue technique. To do this, all rescuers must lie down on the ice next to each other. Each component will have to grab the ankles of the person in front of them to form a chain. The lead member, closest to the victim, has to grab and pull it so that it lies flat on the ice while the trainee pulls the roped back.
Although this technique is not ideal, it is certainly better than a single person who approaches the victim without being secured to the shore, thus running the risk of falling into the water in turn. If the person in the head falls into the water, they have the other support rescuers holding them by the ankles
Step 5. Take the victim out
Try to stay hunched over and out of the ice while shooting with all your might. If there is someone who helps you, use their strength for rescue operations and at the same time to stay away from thin ice. Whichever technique you use (human chain or rope), avoid lifting and carrying the victim, but drag them across the ice.
- Try to stay at a safe distance from fragile ice and keep a firm grip on the rope or object. If you have to get close, try to place your weight on as large an area as possible.
- If you have no choice, crawl on your stomach and don't walk. Another way to decrease the weight-to-surface ratio is to stretch your arms above your head and roll on the ice.
- If you retrieve the victim with a rope or other long object, be sure to drag them towards you and not somewhere else.
Method 3 of 3: Keep the Victim Safe
Step 1. If necessary, perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
If the victim has no pulse and is not breathing, whether from drowning or cardiac arrest, turn on CPR if you know how. If you are not able, however, do not try to practice it, but cry for help, if competent personnel have not yet arrived, in the hope that there will be someone able to do it. Even if the victim appears dead, don't stop. Frozen water and hypothermia slow down vital functions, and a person could be alive even if they don't move or respond.
Step 2. Warm the victim
If she is conscious and breathing, take her to a warm place. You should receive shock treatment as soon as possible. Take off her wet clothes and immerse her in warm, but not hot (maximum 32 ° C) water and then gradually increase the temperature. If you heat a hypothermic person too quickly, you can cause severe arrhythmias. If you don't have hot water available, wrap it in blankets.
Even if you think giving her some hot food or drink might be a good idea, you should definitely not do it, as a person in shock is unable to swallow properly
Step 3. Get him to get medical attention as soon as possible
Even if they feel well, the person should definitely be seen by a doctor. Even if you saved her from the ice, she is still not out of danger. The repercussions of a fall in frozen water (even if only for a few minutes) could be deadly. The victim could have a frostbite and other complications.
Step 4. Avoid future falls by always checking the strength of the ice around you
You should know the thickness where you fish, where you walk, where you snowboard or whatever. You can use a specific chisel, ice drill, cordless drill, or tape measure. You can also call the fishing shop or the hotel near the lake to find out about the ice conditions. Here is a list of the minimum safe thicknesses for the various activities:
- 5 cm or less: Stay away from ice. It is too thin to bear your weight.
- 10cm: Suitable for fishing and other walking activities.
- 12.5cm: Suitable for snowmobile or quad bike.
- 20.5 - 30.5 cm: holds a car or a small pickup.
- 20.5 - 38cm: Suitable for medium sized trucks.
Advice
- In infants and very young children who fall into ice water the diving reflex can be triggered and they may appear dead even if they are not.
- Even your clothes can become a rope if you can't get better (that's right, you'll have to endure a bit of cold to save a person in need …). If you are wearing a sweater or something similar and not bulky like a coat, try to use it. Tie a knot on each sleeve, grab one and throw the other to the victim.
- To distribute your weight, you can slide a ladder on the ground.
- Popular sites for fishing or skating are equipped with rescue kits that include a rope and floats.
- Use a flat-bottomed boat if you need to reach the victim. Professional rescuers have a lot of specific equipment, but if you don't have any better, a boat of this type glides easily on the ice. And if the ice breaks, the rescuer is safe and can operate from inside.
- An ice chisel or similar tool helps to move on the ice and to have a hooking point during rescue operations. If you are able to throw a similar object at the victim, she may be able to get out of the water by herself. You can also use an awl or screwdriver in each hand, to stick into the ice to create a kind of handles.
Warnings
- Don't rewarm the victim too quickly. You can cause her a shock, even a fatal one.
- Note: Many of the images refer to a professional rescue exercise. Never jump into the water trying to save the victim, unless you are a strong swimmer in excellent physical condition (no heart or circulation problems …), complete with a life jacket and training specific. Although the images show rescuers near the shore, remember that this is a drill and they know the safety limits. If you have to save a person on thin ice, be careful not to get too close to the hole.
- Do not approach thin ice without first securing yourself with a rope or without wearing adequate protection. Stay calm and resist the urge to approach without being protected. A person in decent physical condition can maintain coordination and strength to stay afloat for 2-5 minutes, sometimes even longer. Even after this period, if the victim does not lose consciousness, he is able to keep himself out of the water; hypothermia is not the most serious concern, so wait for help, unless there is an imminent danger of drowning.
