(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A deer is frolicking through the forest once again, after Wauconda firefighters rescued it from the icy Fox River over the weekend.
A passerby spotted the deer in distress on the Fox River near the Rawson Bridge in Port Barrington.
Rescuers were able to pull the deer, which they named Jan, out of the frigid water.
“A couple of our guys went out there and grabbed a hold of this deer, who was in shock, I guess, because it didn’t put up a fight at all,” said Wauconda Fire District Chief Pat Kane. “We got it … up onto the ice shelf and up onto the shore.”
Once they managed to get the doe out of the water, fire personnel warmed her up with some hot packs and blankets from their nearby ambulance. After that, the deer was turned over to local conservation police.
“We understand, within 10 or 15 minutes, the deer got up and ran off to enjoy the rest of its day,” Kane said.
The fire chief said calls to rescue animals from the frozen river are rare.
“Well for animals, it’s maybe one or two a year we get called out there for,” he said. “It’s usually a deer or a dog, believe it or not. Those seem to be the two prevalent animals we get called for by folks.”
Kane added that he's glad professionals were able to rescue the deer.
“The reason we go out there, Number One, is if we didn’t, then somebody else is going to put themselves in harm's way,” he said. “So, not only do we have a deer stuck in the middle of the river, now I got one or two good-natured citizens who wanted to go out there and rescue the deer — now I’m rescuing people.”
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