BONNER COUNTY, Idaho-- Two firefighters saved a family 50 miles outside of their department’s jurisdiction by walking a boat downriver to reach the family stranded on a bank of Priest River.
On July 24, a Bonner County Sheriff’s Office sergeant found a group of women stranded on the side of Priest River in the Coolin area. A husband, wife, their daughter and her friends got lost while floating the river and decided to beach themselves.
While the father was able to walk out to safety, the women were left behind in 40-degree weather, officials said. The sergeant checked to see if the search and rescue team had access to a boat that could carry that much weight in shallow waters, but no luck.
The sergeant contacted Jake Rich at Northside Fire Department, who owned a Zodiac – one of the lowest draft boats there is. The Coolin area is about 50 miles outside of Northside’s jurisdiction, but they were the best shot at getting the group out before sunrise.
After approving the mission with his chief, Rich set out with Eric Clayton, who is also with Northside Fire Department, on a rescue mission. They made it a mile down stream but neither of the men could safely navigate the river with their boat because of the low water level and poor lighting. To top it off, radio and cell coverage was spotty in the area.
Instead of calling it quits, they got out of the boat and walked it several miles down the river where they found the six women. Even in an area outside their jurisdiction, the two heroes braved harsh conditions to protect people’s lives.
