May 03, 2002
Friday - 6:50 pm

A Coast Guard boat crew returns to the scene in the afternoon May 2 where a crane toppled into the water, injuring its operator, but not the Ketchikan man's dog. The boom crane sank in 27 feet of water at 930 Stedman St. after the man and dog leapt from the flying vehicle.  (Official U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Greg Wolfe, Station Ketchikan)

Ketchikan, Alaska - A toppling crane forced a Ketchikan man and his dog to leap for their lives Thursday afternoon in Alaska's 'First City'.

A Coast Guard crewmember at Station Ketchikan overhead radio conversation on the station's scanner at 2:05 p.m. detailing how 45-year-old Brian Nicholas and his dog ejected from his crane-equipped vehicle into the water near a fuel dock.

According to Petty Officer David Davis, as Nicholas began using the boom crane to lower a skiff into the water behind 930 Stedman St., the vessel's weight tipped the crane over sideways, pulling or knocking Nicholas into the 27-feet deep water.

A Station Ketchikan rescue boat crew responded to the scene within four minutes, finding an injured Nicholas and a Ketchikan Fire Department paramedic treading water. The paramedic fastened a safety line around Nicholas and kept his head above water until additional rescuers could assist.

The 47-foot rescue boat crew edged their vessel toward the two men while one Coast Guard rescuer prepared to enter the water off the boat's bow, carrying with him a stretcher.

"The man suffered a broken femur and a severe laceration on his left arm," said Coast Guard Petty Officer Greg Wolfe.

The Coast Guard crew and the KFD paramedic placed Nicholas into the stretcher, hoisted him aboard the rescue boat and transported him to an awaiting ambulance crew at Thomas Basin. The Coast Guard crew performed first aid on Nicholas during the transit that included bandaging his bleeding arm. The ambulance team took Nicholas to Ketchikan General Hospital (KGH) for treatment.

Concerned for his dog's welfare, Nicholas told the Station Ketchikan rescuers that his dog also jumped from the vehicle as it plunged toward the water.

"Some guys on the pier told us that the dog that jumped was safe and since it wasn't wet and it appeared healthy, I don't think it ever entered the water," said Petty Officer Davis.

The Coast Guard crew returned to the station at 2:42 p.m., and notified emergency room nurses at KGH that Nicholas' dog 'is alive and well'.

Source of News Release & Digital Photo:

United States Coast Guard
Web Site

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