A quick-thinking fisherman managed to rescue an 11-year-old boy who was stranded on a block of ice in the middle of a freezing Ukraine river. The fisherman came up with a creative way to haul the boy back to shore
Written content from Elisa Menendez
Richard Gorda filmed the tense moment he saved the schoolboy with his fishing rod from the Desenka river, in Kyiv, on Sunday.
The video shows the lone boy, who reportedly could not swim, floating on a tiny block of ice far out on the river.
Mr Gorda can be heard calling out to the boy telling him to keep calm, before grabbing his fishing equipment.
He then attaches a weight to the end of his spinning rod and casts it out with such accuracy that it miraculously reaches the boy.
The little boy grabs the line and Mr Gorda begins slowly reeling him in towards the shore.
Witnesses are seen helping the child get off the ice block and help him onto dry land.
The boy is understood to have escaped unharmed and did not need any medical treatment.
He is said to have been playing close to the river with a friend before the two climbed on the ice – but it began to crack under their feet and split.
One of them managed to quickly jump to dry land but the other was stuck on the ice floe and was swept out around 65 feet from the shore.
Luckily, Mr Gorda and a friend were fishing nearby and sprung into action.
Sharing the video on Facebook, Mr Gorda wrote: ‘Luckily, we turned out to be in the right place and at the right time.
‘The fact that I cast [the spinning rod] and hit at once is God’s mercy.
‘I might have had no time for another try. The ice piece was cracking under that boy.
‘The child didn’t even get wet or anything, he’s safe and sound but he will learn that lesson for life.
‘Watch out for your children and never allow them to approach [icy] water.’
Mr Gorda warned social media users: ‘If any of you people out there see trouble, call the Ministry of Internal Affairs first, then do not panic and look for anything that can help. Read more from Metro
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