GOSHEN – The fire department was called into action on Sunday to aid in the rescue of a man who fell through the ice, although in the end the man was able to exit the water on his own.
Firefighters received a call in the late afternoon from a bystander that someone had fallen through the ice at Upper Highland Lake in the DAR State Forest, according to the Goshen Fire Department. The man fell through 2-inch thick ice near the gazebo on the lake’s southern shore.
When firefighters arrived on the scene, Fire Chief Cameron Lacey said, the man had gotten out of the water on his own and was collecting his gear, as he had been ice fishing.
“He did not fall through again,” the chief said.
The man made it to shore on his own power, although the department did suit up and inflated a boat in case he fell through again.
Upon reaching the first responders the man was warmed up and evaluated by Highland Ambulance. He then chose to leave and go his own way.
Lacey said that this was the first fall through ice that his department has responded to this winter, and the first such call he’d heard about including surrounding towns at this time of year as well.
“We haven’t done too many in the past couple years,” he said.
He said the ice is currently unpredictable due to different types of precipitation and temperature changes. He said white ice can be a sign of weakness.
Bera Dunau can be reached at bdunau@gazettenet.com.