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MSP Air Wing members describe daring river rescue

Two Massachusetts State Troopers in a helicopter made a daring rescue to save a man stranded in icy water, when police and fire boats were unable to get to him.

It was eight-degrees on Jan. 3 when Air Wing members John Hazelrigg and Russell Phippen were called to the Merrimack River in Lowell to illuminate the area for rescue boats.

A 24-year-old Lowell man, who was reported missing by his family earlier, was found in the river near the Ouellette Bridge around 7:30 p.m.

Lowell police and fire responded to the rescue, but the fire boats had difficulty reaching the man due to hazardous conditions from ice flows and shallow water.

"The fire boats, two of them I believe, had been disabled in the water due to ice or rocks," said Phippen.

As the man began to slip into deeper water, the Air Wing had to step in.

Without training or equipment for it, they landed the helicopter at LeLacheur Park on Aiken Street and the co-pilot positioned himself in the back of the chopper so he could reach the victim.

They made two attempts to pull the man from the river, resting the helicopter skids on the surface of the water. The co-pilot was able to pull the man into the helicopter.

"I was able to grab him and just grab a piece of him and I was able to kind of pull a little bit up, and grab a little bit more," said Phippen.

Once they had him in, they flew to Lowell General Hospital where ER doctors were waiting.

The man, fighting hypothermia, was said to be OK.

Despite all of the challenges in making this rescue, both Air Wing members say if called again to do the same thing, they certainly would.

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