FDNY Rescues Boy Trapped On Ice In Bronx River At Concrete Plant Park

Firefighters from Ladder 54 help 10-year-old boy as be begins to climb across the ladder on the Bronx River to safety at Concrete Park late yesterday afternoon about 4:30 p.m.  The boy was trapped on a frozen portion of the river about 20 feet from the bank of the park.  The rescuer and two children, including a 13-year-boy who had also ventured on the ice and had fallen in, were treated for exposure at Jocobi Hospital. The kids had climbed a fence to gain acess to the water.  The boys live in the same building and go to the same school.  (Photos: FDNY) Dramatic video. 

This was FDNY's second ice rescue recently. On January 11th, midtown Manhattan's Rescue 1 came to the aid of a man who fellen through the ice in Central Park on The Lake by the boathouse restaurant.  Firefighters happened to be running drills on the ice when a man began walking towards them and fell through, according to an FDNY spokesperson. 

Bronx

 FDNY firefighters from Ladder 54 saved a young boy trapped on ice in the Bronx River.

 “The firefighters did a fantastic job,” Capt. Thomas Yuneman, Ladder 54, said. “Within two minutes we had him coming to shore,” according to the FDNY.   

 The members – including Capt. Yuneman and Firefighters Kevin Hillmann, Chris Harkinish, John Tonner, Thomas Bloomfield and Carlos Brito – were called just after 4:30 p.m. 

Two children – a boy and girl – were on the ice. The girl had fallen into the river, but was able to climb onto rocks and back to shore before firefighters arrived.

The boy, who was around 10-years-old, was still standing on very thin ice.  Upon arrival, Capt. Yuneman immediately climbed over the railing and to the shoreline to talk to the boy. 

He looked terrified as the ice cracked below his feet, but Capt. Yuneman said he told him to stand still and remain calm. 

Firefighters bring the terrified boy to shore.   By the time Ladder 54 had arrived a 13-year-old boy, who had fallen into the river,  had climbed onto rocks and made it back to shore.

At the same time, Firefighters Harkinish and Hillmann (who teaches cold water rescue training for the Department) quickly dressed in gear and got tethered for the rescue. 

They pushed a portable ladder out to the boy and began to walk onto the ice. The ice was thin and the firefighters fell through – Firefighter Hillman was submerged to his neck and Firefighter Harkinish, who was just behind him, to his waist -- but continued to assure the boy he would be safe.  

They told him to climb on his knees across the ladder, like he was on monkey bars, until he reached the firefighters, who carried him to shore.  The boy, who never fell into the water, was transported to Jacobi Hospital with minor injuries. 

 “I have never had to put my [cold water rescue] training to use but my training did not let me down,” Firefighter Harkinish said. “The ice was very thin and the situation could have been much worse.”

Read More:

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: FDNY RESCUES BOY STANDING ON FROZEN BRONX RIVER
WABC - January 29, 2015

FDNY rescues boy stuck atop ice on Bronx River
New York Daily News - January 29, 2015 -  By Joseph Stepansky

Bronx River Rivals Gowanus Canal In Fecal Bacteria

“The numbers are consistently high. Even without the rain, the numbers are very high.”  - 
New York City Water Trail Association



Fecal bacteria in the Bronx River rivals the Gowanus Canal.  After heavy rains, the borough's namesake waterway gets especially filthy. Swimming is out. Boating is OK.  

Bronx

The Bronx River is full of crap. 

New testing reveals that the Westchester-to-East River waterway now has levels of fecal bacteria to rival the notorious Gowanus Canal, a federal Superfund cleanup site, according to an article in the New York Daily News. 

Testing by the New York City Water Trail Association says the levels of enterococcus, a fecal bacterium, is especially bad after heavy rainfall, when New York’s antiquated sewage and storm drain system dumps excess wastewater into area rivers.

“The numbers are consistently high,” said Sam Marquand, who has been collecting samples near Hunts Point Riverside Park. “Even without the rain, the numbers are very high.” 

Marquand and other volunteers have been collecting samples from across the city since May. Two points along the Bronx River — the Hunts Point Riverside Park and the newly opened Starlight Park — have unusually high amounts of bacteria.

“It’s not just regular runoff,” a worried Marquand said. “Stuff is just ending up in the river without being treated and there is no way of knowing right now where it's coming from.”  

 

A boom that catches garbage in the Bronx River catches plenty.  

The high levels of enterococcus make the river unsafe for recreational activities like swimming under normal conditions. But the numbers jumped 13-fold after heavy rains, such as in the last week of June. 

Only the infamous Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn has more bacteria. 

The good news? You shouldn’t be swimming in the river anyway, but boating is all right, said Rob Buchanan, founder of the New York City Water Trail Association. 

“Boating is actually a very good way to use a polluted waterway,” he said. “It gets the public invested and gets people interested in protecting the waterway.” 

The Department of Environmental Protection says it has stepped up efforts to curb trash and sewage problems in the river, including efforts to reduce storm water overflows. 

Waterway advocates hope that more testing could force the city to reevaluate the sewage system around the Bronx River. "People are out there swimming in the river everyday and they should know what they're up against” Marquand said. 

"People need to be aware of these things so we can change them." 

Read More:

Report: Bronx River is almost as bad as the Gowanus Canal for fecal bacteria 
New York Daily News -  July 4, 2013 - By Denis Slattery

Dead Woman Found Floating In Bronx River

(Photo: Michael Schwartz for New York News)

A dead woman was found floating in the Bronx River alongside Bronx River Park early Saturday morning.

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The nude body of a woman was found floating in the Bronx River early Saturday, not far from a park that runs along the shoreline, police said, according to the New York Daily News.

The grisly discovery was made shortly after 9 a.m. when a local resident spotted the corpse floating in the murky waters near the Bronx River Park in Williamsbridge.

Police have yet to indentify the victim, whom they described as black and in her 20s or 30s. The medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine how she died.

One local resident who was among the first people to see the body said it was spotted across the river from a paved path that leads down to a line of small trees at the water's edge. The resident said there was blood on the path.

Dozens of people turned out to watch as police and officials from the city medical examiner's office fished the body out of the river about 1 p.m. and investigated the crime scene.

Detectives appealed to the crowd for any information that may help them as they investigate.

The part of the park that is close to where the body was found is parallel to Bronx Blvd., near E. 226th St.

There are two bocce courts in that part of the park, and neighbors said the area is a hangout where young people smoke pot and party.

Some neighbors expressed concern about a pervert who has recently been exposing himself to women in the area, particularly pregnant women.

One woman, who declined to give her name, said the man actually touched her stomach and asked if she was pregnant.

A man who lives in the area described the wooded, riverside park as "relatively safe," but said he still warns female relatives to avoid the park after dark.

"If you're out here late at night, you should know better," he said, declining to give his name.

Police ask anyone with information to call the Crime Stoppers tipline at 800-577-TIPS. All calls are confidential.

Read More:

Nude body of woman found floating in Bronx River early Saturday

New York Daily News - July 3o, 2011 - By Alex Christodulides and Bob Kappstatter