By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A woman fishing in the Cowlitz River south of Ethel yesterday was rescued after her boat struck a log and dumped her into the icy water.
A man in another boat heard her yelling and tried to grab her but couldn’t and called 911 about 7:15, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
Crews responded to the area near Brim and Spencer roads on both sides of the river and finally spotted the woman who had pulled herself onto a tree above very heavy rapids, Lewis County Fire District 8 Chief Duran McDaniel said.
Firefighters from Toledo in two boats they put in the river pulled the woman to safety, he said.
McDaniel said the area, about a mile and a half upstream from the Blue Creek Hatchery and Boat Launch, is rather remote and it was getting to be dusk when they got to her.
“She’s very lucky she had a passerby,” McDaniel said. “That saved her life; there’s no doubt about it.”
Jeanine McDaniel – no relation to the fire chief – 47, from Fife, was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital to be treated for scrapes and possible hypothermia, according to the sheriff’s office.
She was boating alone and not wearing a life jacket, sheriff’s Sgt. Rob Snaza said. It’s a good reminder of how important safety precautions can be, Snaza said.
Neither Snaza or Chief McDaniel knew how long she’d been in the water.
“That river rises and falls on a regular basis,” Snaza said. “When you’re fishing, you should always be wearing a life jacket.”
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Well, that is not the entire story. My daughter 10 years old and her friend also ten were dumped from the boat. My ten year old daughter did not seek permission to raft and the adults, who I don’t know and her father barely knows took the two girls without parental permission. My daughter was able to swim to shore. Her ten year old friend was also caught in the tree. Who takes someones child without asking?
so your son went swimming in a lake next to the shore where the water is 10 to 15 degrees warmer than the river. get a clue dumbass. the only fiction here is you trying to make us believe that the snow run off in the cowlitz is warm… pure ass fiction dummy.
This is a good example of why you should wear a life vest anytime you are on the water. Especially if you are out alone. Thank goodness she came out of it okay. I was following this on the scanner and several citizens launched their own boats to assist in this rescue.
Sumthin – could it be that your son went swimming, two weeks later, in a different place that woman was plucked from? Especially after the flooded rivers? And I don’t know the geography too well, but did your son swim in a river, or lake at IK? Just wondering….
icy water? its september my son went swimming yesterday at ike kinswa as it was 90 plus. this is news reporting not fiction.