4 days ago
Man trapped in frigid river calls for help before ‘selfless' rescue, AK cops say
A state trooper rescued a 'severely hypothermic' man who was stuck in a frigid Alaska river by getting in the water himself and holding the man up for roughly 30 minutes until more help arrived, officials said.
Trooper Nathan Hollenbeck responded early May 29 after a woman reported hearing a man calling out for help from the Tanana River in Nenana, troopers said in a dispatch report.
The man, Jonathan Pitka, 37, from Fairbanks, was by a roughly 15-foot sea wall, troopers said.
Troopers didn't say how he came to be in the water.
Hollenbeck tried to pull Pitka out using a tow strap attached to his vehicle, troopers said, but Pitka couldn't hold onto it.
So Hollenbeck 'stripped his duty gear off' and repelled to Pitka, keeping him afloat until rescuers arrived by boat, troopers said.
Both men were taken to a hospital and received care for hypothermia, troopers said.
Hollenbeck later told KTUU that the cold water took a toll on him.
'While I was in the water, I was losing dexterity, I was losing strength, and at times I lost my grip on Mr. Pitka, I lost my grip on the seawall and I had to rely on that harness that I made to keep me afloat to regain my strength [and] to keep Mr. Pitka's head above the water,' he said, according to the outlet.
In a May 30 Facebook post, state troopers described what Hollenbeck did as a 'selfless act.'
Commenters seemed to agree.
'Trooper Hollenbeck is a hero! Risked his own life for another without hesitation,' one wrote.
'Hero move right there!' wrote another.
Nenana is about 55 miles southwest from Fairbanks.
