CLERMONT COUNTY, OH (FOX19) -
A volunteer firefighter is being called a hero after saving the life of man's best friend.
Danny Redden, a Felicity firefighter, risked his life to save a dog from a frozen lake.
Dog owner Larry Trammel admits that his 9-year-old dog, Brownie, has gained a bit of weight over the years. She has gotten too heavy, in fact, for the ice.
Brownie was chasing ducks when she wandered onto the ice of a fishing pond. The ice broke under the dog's feet leaving Brownie stranded in the middle of the pond.
"I thought she was going to drown," said Trammel. "I knew I couldn't walk out on [the ice]. She was pitiful sounding, you know, barking and crying and fighting."
Trammel called 911. Moments later, the Felicity Fire Department arrived at the scene.
Danny Redden went out on the ice with a rescue basket while Lt. Scott Colyer held on to a safety rope.
"We went about five feet when the ice gave way and consumed every bit of my body," said Redden. "The only thing I could keep up was my head."
Redden kept swimming toward the dog and managed to secure Brownie in the rescue basket. Redden says his feet could not touch the bottom of the lake but his fellow firefighters pulled him and Brownie to safety.
Redden says he has never done a cold water rescue before. However, he credits the save to his training.
Redden, a dog lover himself, got into a medic unit to recuperate. Brownie warmed up in her usual spot next to the fireplace.
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