Trapped frozen moose reheated by rescuers.

[A.W]

Trapped frozen moose reheated by rescuers
Hypothermic animal hauled to safety

`Morris' warmed with blanket, massage


CHUCK TOBIN
CANADIAN PRESS

WHITEHORSE—A moose that had fallen through the ice of a Kluane National Park lake and was freezing to death was hauled to safety by four rescuers who spent hours in the frigid cold making sure it survived.

Hazel Booth, her brother Grant, Matt Schenck and Sean MacKinnon were headed to Haines, Alaska, on Boxing Day for some mountain climbing.

But they stopped at Haines Junction, about 120 kilometres west of Whitehorse, when they were unable to buy gasoline.

They headed into Kluane National Park to look for somewhere else to climb when Grant Booth, visiting from the Ottawa area, saw what looked like a boulder some 200 metres off, sitting at the bottom of an avalanche that had spilled on to Kathleen Lake.

But then the boulder moved.

"Grant said to me, `Hey Hazel, are moose supposed to be in the water at this time of year?'" Hazel Booth of Teslin, Yukon, said on Wednesday.

They cautiously approached the enormous animal, which didn't react at all. The moose was covered in ice, its hind legs completely submerged. It was only with its front quarters folded in half against the edge of the hole that the moose was able to keep itself from sinking to its death.

Morris the Ice Dancer — as they soon dubbed him — appeared to have fallen through ice that would normally have been frozen thick. A recent avalanche brought on by unusually warm temperatures had smashed the ice and it had not yet properly frozen over.

The four debated whether to help, let nature take its course or possibly hasten Morris' death and end his suffering.

"I mean, it was pretty clear if we would have left him, he would have died," said Schenck, an occupational therapist.

"Almost within the hour, I bet," added Grant Booth.

They quickly decided to help. They began by offering Morris some food, which he declined.

The four broke the horseshoe of thin ice surrounding the moose and tried to slip a rope around its head to see if pulling and lifting could somehow spring him loose. The attempt jarred Morris free, but he slipped deeper into the lake.

Then MacKinnon used his climbing experience. With the group's climbing gear, he devised a pulley system to successfully haul the moose from the ice hole. After two hours of hard exertion, Morris came loose.

The four rescuers hauled Morris about a metre from the hole, covered him with a blanket, built an ice wall to protect him from the wind and started a fire.

They massaged him to bring back his circulation and removed the ice from his fur. For more than three hours, they warmed Morris and didn't return to their camp for the night, wet and cold, until after dark.

The next day, Morris had been up, travelled about 200 metres and had begun to browse in a nearby thicket, still weak, but on the mend.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Conten ... 4621011593

[GaryL]

[Guitarman]

Well I just happened to read that this morning on the JOHN at work... Felt like sending those fols some sort of a thank you... but not with the paper I was a usin'..LOL

That was a sure fine feat I must say myself....

Guitarman

[Doug the Slug]

My wife brought that article home for me to read yesterday, it was very interesting and quite amazing to say the least. A friend of mine who is a local fire chief told me a similar story about some deer that went through the ice that he and fellow firefighters rescued. Normally a deer would kick the living crap out of you but they were so worn out they never put up any fuss when they pulled them into the boat. They were taken to a local animal shelter, recovered and released a few days later. You gotta preserve those future hunting opportunities you know!
Regards and Happy New Year to you all,
Doug

[Quickshot]

Great story