Two Children Rescued After Falling Through Ice At Queens Pond
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Two children have been rescued after falling through the ice of a pond in Queens.
Sources tell CBS2 the children were playing on a frozen pond in Forest Park on Christmas day.
With temperatures above the freezing mark, the two fell through around 3 p.m.
First responders carried the two young boys out of the pond wrapped in white blankets as FDNY rescuers brought them into an ambulance.
A third child was also seen being escorted away by emergency crews, but it does not appear he fell in the water. that child reportedly helped pull the two out of the water.
City officials have been continuing to warn people to stay off the ice in local parks – especially in Central Park, where several people have received summonses for the dangerous stunt.
"With the sudden and extreme drop in temperatures, our water bodies have begun to freeze, and this is when they can be most dangerous. No matter how fun the ice may look, anyone walking on the ice is taking a big risk with their life," Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver said in a statement.
Last year, an 11-year-old boy died after going into this same pond to save his drowning friend. The child managed to push his friend out but could not save himself.
CBS2's Ali Bauman spoke with one father who was walking by this pond with his son and when he saw some of the commotion, taught his own child about being careful near ice.
"We got to the park my son and I and we saw a police helicopter circling I got a little nervous cause we were planning on going to the woods," Frank Carbonari said. "I taught him what to look for on the ice and to feel it and to listen."
The Parks Department says while many of the city's 96 ponds may look frozen, it is still not safe to go on the ice.
Those two children are now being treated at Jamaica Hospital and are expected to be alright.
