Rescuers win a race against time to save woman trapped on the ice in remote northern Ont. town

Volunteers with the Moosonee Volunteer Fire Department rescued a woman trapped on the ice on Moose River on Sunday. (Photo courtesy of Scott Grant)

A dramatic rescue took place in a remote part of northern Ontario over the weekend, with crews managing to save a woman trapped on the ice at night.

Adding to the drama was the spring break-up on Moose River in Moosonee barrelling toward them just a few kilometres away.

Moosonee Volunteer Fire Department Chief Scott Grant said they got the call around 9:30 p.m. April 30 that a woman was trapped on the ice.

“They were screaming for help and screaming really loud, obviously sounded like they were in distress,” Grant said, in a phone interview Tuesday.

“I immediately activated our drone team, our fire rescue team and I went and investigated the area right away. It was determined we could see an individual approximately 600 metres out on the ice.”

But their view was getting more difficult as the sun set, he said, and by the time rescue equipment was in place, it was dark and they lost sight of her.

“We didn't have … flashlights that could reach out that far,” Grant said. “It's pitch black now on the ice.”

Fortunately, they purchased a $42,000 drone a year or two ago capable of helping with search and rescue operations in remote areas.

The DJI Matrice 300 drone, which has advanced search capabilities and can fly for up to an hour at a time, managed to do a quick grid search and find the woman, still standing on the ice.

By this point, Grant said the spring break-up was three to five kilometres away and getting closer. The drone team had a visual of the woman and guided the rescue team to her location.

“At the time of rescue, the individual was 400 metres away from shore, it was pitch black … and we could hear the ice cracking,” he said.

The rescuers were tethered to the shore and to the rapid deployment craft, which is basically an inflatable boat. They reached the woman, got her inside the boat and then crews on the shore pulled the rescue craft and the woman to shore.

Once the drone found her location, Grant said it took them eight minutes to reach her and another four minutes to get her back to shore.

“Once we got the individual on the shore, we handed off to the paramedic service,” he said.

A paramedic himself, he drove the ambulance to the clinic, where she was treated.

“It's about a three-minute drive to the clinic and after we get to the clinic, we were able to get the patient out of the ambulance and onto the gurney,” Grant said.

“I got a phone call from my deputy chief that said the ice water just broke up and it's completely open water now. So we're, we were looking at about 10 minutes time between the time we got her off the ice to about the time when there was no ice left.”

It was an extremely fortunate rescue, he said, and it’s thanks to the dedication and professionalism of the volunteers that made it happen.

'SHATTERS ALL THE ICE LIKE GLASS'

“It just shatters all the ice like glass and carries it out to the bay,” Grant said, of the spring break-up.

“It's a very violent experience. It doesn't just melt away. It actually just shatters and you can hear it crashing. It's very violent.”

Thanks to their training, he said they were able to save someone’s life at a crucial moment.

“We have an incredibly dedicated crew of (volunteer) individuals who work tirelessly to protect the community,” Grant said.

“We train hard just for this situation and it's one of those moments where our training kicks in and we knew that the imminent breakup was coming. We knew that it was about three to five kilometres south of our location and it was on its way.”