Anyone else just see that amazing water rescue of a dog by the LAFD?
 

He was trapped in a river and they saved him. :clap:

It was awesome to watch. I'm sure they will catch a lot of flack about it from non-animal lovers but it was a sight to see.

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damn i was watching it for a while and just turned it off. didnt think he would make it.

They scared him over to an embankment where the water was more shallow. A man was dropped from a helicopter and after much struggle was able to lift him out of the water and to safety.

It was probably more dangerous than it looked because there were power lines and a bridge nearby.

Video.

http://www.wesh.com/video/22316355/i...tml?source=CNN


http://www.ktla.com/videobeta/

they went out to beat a black guy up to celebrate

That dog looks pissed.

He was scared. He'd been sitting in raging water for at last a half hour. He had lots of strangers around, a helicopter, and then the fireman. I hope the fireman is ok.

Wow, that was pretty cool. That looked like a pure bread German Sheppard too. Damn good dogs if raised right.

Heh, his legs kept going the whole time he was in the air.

I like dogs as much as anyone, but that's a shit ton of taxpayer money spent right there.

The entire thing was pretty intense. The poor dog was stuck on a rock in the middle for the longest time. Then they brought in the helicopter to try to push him to the bank but he went down stream and almost got sucked under the current. He was paddling as fast and as hard as he could trying to go sideways and then backwards. He then got what they were trying to do and headed towards the embankment. You see the rest from there.

At least our governments out here are flush with cash. :rolleyes:

The rescue itself was very well done, though.

But it's also invaluable training for them. You can simulate an unwilling victim or a victim who is scared or doesn't understand but to actually have one to learn from is good experience. And they will get hours and hours of good press which will help them raise money if they decide to try to offset the cost.

that rescuer had to be a good sport...looked like fido was biting the shit out of his arms while he was trying to get ahold of it.
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Indeed. Hopefully he's ok...

and the dog doesn't have rabies. :spock::doh!:

I don't know. People will complain about this but with all of the trauma and bad news and frustration in the news lately, a feel good story is always welcome.

This is the newscast I was watching. Shepherd Smith was a hoot.

http://www.mediaite.com/online/shep-...on-dog-rescue/

Excellent point.

No one would give a shit if that was a cat. Myself included.

Me thinks a cat would be smart enough to be nowhere near a river in a flood. :D:doh!:

FYI, the dog bit the firefighter's hand. I just saw the presser with the firefighter, who had just been released from the hospital. He had an enormous cast on his hand and thumb.

They deployed a helicopter, 50 firefighters, and numerous other vehicles for an hour. That's a lot of cash and pain to swoop up a dog, IMHO.

The training argument doesn't hold water with me. However, a little more plausible explanation, given by the firefighters, was that they wanted to rescue the dog before an untrained human would go down there and try to do it.

Poor dog.

It went from HOLY SHIT I'M GONNA DROWN to HOLY SHIT I'M FLYING and dog paddling the whole way.

Glad the dog is safe.

Really though, how much in taxpayer money did that cost? The fuel for the whirlybird is about it. They were gonna pay the firefighter his salary regardless of the rescue or not, they were already paying for the heli so its not like they went out and purchased it just for this rescue.

I'm ignorant when it comes to cost of aircraft fuel but if they used $500 bucks of fuel for the rescue... it was money well spent. Just because it is a dog does not make it less alive or less afraid of drowning.

It may not hold water for you. But it sure will to someone who may be trapped in river someday.

4:1 - Nobody will claim ownership and the dog will be put down in 2 months.

On that note, I wonder what Donger's thoughts on this are.

I don't know. I think you would be hard pressed to find fault with the LAFD for this rescue. It happened to be caught on tape live but a dog was rescued out of an icy pond by firefighters in IA and a liter of puppies and Mom were rescued out of a storm drain by firefighters in OK...

just in the past two days. :clap:

I'm almost positive that that was Santa's Little Helper.

http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/i...ttleHelper.jpg

Training opportunity, the only reason they got involved. Perfect situation to train for a human rescue.

Think of it like this, they do it all the time in mock scenarios where no one but a firefighter/actor gets rescued.....Swift Water Rescue got some free training in a live situation instead of a mock one

With the exception of the biting. People will typically not bite when being saved. :)

Actually I routinely gnaw on the arms of my rescuers :p

Can't they just kung-fu the dog's head and carry it to safety without it getting all chow-town on em? Works in the movies, yes?

You said it!

It's not like the state of California is broke.....oh wait.

California is becoming as dependent on federal money as many 3rd world nations. Floods, earthquakes, fires, etc.....

I wonder how much federal money has been spent in California the last 30 years compared to other states?

Obviously California by population pays more federal taxes than most states so I am not bashing California.

http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-01-0...budget-deficit

Sacramento — California's political leaders, who are facing the daunting challenge of closing an estimated $20.7 billion budget deficit this year, are looking to Washington for help. Just don't call it a bailout.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, said he plans to head to the nation's capital "early and often" seeking federal assistance. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger already has put the federal government on notice that he wants billions he says the state is owed. And outgoing Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, D-Baldwin Vista (Los Angeles County), said she would head east as soon as this month.