United States

Utah Officer Saves 8-Year-Old Boy From Frozen Pond

Sheriff's Sgt. Aaron Thompson punched through ice before diving in to rescue the drowning child

An 8-year-old boy was plucked from the waters of a frozen Utah pond on Christmas Day after he fell in while chasing his dog, NBC News reported.

The boy, whose name hasn't been made public, was saved by Washington County sheriff's Sgt. Aaron Thompson, authorities said. His condition hasn't been disclosed. Thompson suffered only cuts, bruises and symptoms of hypothermia, and was back at work Tuesday.

"You never know exactly what you're going to get into," Thompson, a rescue diver by training and a former member of the sheriff's dive team, told reporters on Tuesday. "I just made the decision that I was going to go get him."

When lauded for his heroic actions, Thompson reminded reporters that it was not just him who saved the boy — medical crews, a helicopter crew and a witness who steered him the boy's general direction all helped.

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