An 8-year-old girl had to be rescued after falling into the frigid waters of the Thames River in northeast London.
The girl was with family on a trail off of Cobblestone Road, west of Highbury Avenue when she fell into the river around 7 p.m. on Thursday. After attempting, unsuccessfully , to pull her from the water on his own, the girl's father called emergency crews.
"Two of our firefighters went into the water in our water suits and were able to put a PFD, a floatation device, on the child and get her back to land. She was in good spirits," said London Fire Department Platoon Chief Colin Shewell.
The girl was not hurt in the ordeal, but was checked over by paramedics as a precaution.
This is the third time in the past two weeks firefighters have had to rescue a person from the Thames River. Last Wednesday, a woman was pulled from the water near Harris Park. Firefighters found the woman under a bridge and brought her back to shore around 11:30 p.m. She was not hurt. Four days prior to that incident, firefighters saved another woman who had fallen into the Thames near Carfrae Street.
Shewell said in all three cases the situation could have easily ended tragically had firefighters not been able to reach the people so quickly. He is urging Londoners to stay away from the river and all other bodies of water this time of year.
"We just want everyone to be safe," said Shewell. "Enjoy the nice weather, but always be respectful of the river. The water is very cold and the time in the water that you'll be able to survive is definitely decreased this time of year."
A boating ban was put into effect on all portions of the Thames within the city on Friday. It will remain in effect until river levels have receded to a point deemed safer.
