Two deer saved from river in dramatic rescue

Two icebound deer were rescued Friday in dramatic fashion, one with the draft of a low-hovering helicopter, the second by a man who went onto the ice and forced the animal to shore, with the help of a second man. As spectators watched in awe, a white helicopter hovered above the ice and literally blew the animal back to shore, about a football field's distance.

The copter, however, could do nothing for the second deer, which refused to budge. Observers were even more stunned when a man armed with nothing more than a stick walked out onto the ice and began driving the deer back to shore. Once the animal came closer, a member of the local water ski club, which had been considering a rescue of its own,helped pull the animal to land, using a rope.



The first deer, the one driven by the copter, made it through guard rail along the Great River Road and loped haphazardly into nearby woods and was lost to sight. People stopped traffic along the highway to make sure it was not hurt.

The second deer was carried by people up the shoreline rocks and over the guard rail and was set down near the bluffside shoulder. It hobbled for a distance but laid back down and was being examined. A representative from Treehouse Wildlife Center in Dow said the deer's legs were not broken but that it was definitely suffering the effects of being on ice since at least Wednesday.