WINSLOW — A 2-year-old Irish setter was rescued by boat Friday morning from the frigid waters of the Kennebec River after she got away from her owner on a hiking trail to chase ducks, wandered onto the snowy ice of the river and slipped into the water.
The dog, Keeli, was in the water up to her ears for about 30 minutes when Winslow firefighters wearing cold-water suits arrived by boat in the rain and pulled her from of the water, wrapped her in blankets, towels and heat packs, and took her back downriver to safety.
“I cannot thank the Winslow Fire Rescue enough for saving my sweet girl this morning,” said Gail Bacheller, the dog’s owner. “It seemed to take forever for them to arrive, but what relief when I saw the boat coming up the river. They are a wonderful group of men.”
The rescue took place about a mile north of Simpson Avenue, off Benton Avenue, on what is known as the Benton rail trail.
“It was a good operation,” said David LaFountain, chief of Winslow and Waterville fire departments. “We had enough help and everything worked like clockwork and it was a success. The training and dedication pays off.”
It was the second time in three days that Winslow firefighters used special equipment for a rescue at the Kennebec River. On Wednesday, they rescued a 45-year-old man who had fallen down a 40-foot embankment to the river’s edge north of the Ticonic Bridge.
Just before 9 a.m. Friday morning, Bacheller was walking the dog with two friends, Larry and Donna Genest, on the rail trail, as they do every day. Keeli began to chase ducks, Bacheller, 63, said.
“She usually goes off the trail on the other (east) side, but she decided to go the other way today,” Bacheller said.
Bacheller, a former Maine State Police dispatcher, stood on the riverbank in deep snow and water, waiting for rescue workers to arrive as Keeli struggled in the cold water about 25 yards from shore.
“You hold on, Keeli,” a calm Bacheller called out. “You hold on, baby – don’t you dare let go.”
The temperature was 33 degrees when Keeli went into the frigid waters.
After a tense wait, Bacheller saw the Winslow rescue boat arriving in the river from the south.
“The boat is coming,” Bacheller called to Genest, who cried with relief.
The boat, carrying Winslow fire Lts. Scott Higgins and Waylon Capp, as well as firefighter Adam Burgess, approached an exhausted Keeli at 9:23 a.m. and pulled her into the boat.
Amy Calder can be contacted at 861-9247 or at:
acalder@centralmaine.com
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