ST. LOUIS, Missouri (CNN/KSDK) -- A dramatic rescue of a dog from a frozen pond in Missouri was caught on tape.
This was the scene late New Year's morning at Fairground Park. Around 11:30, a man was walking his dog in the park when this German Shepherd mix popped up, got spooked, and ran onto the ice. Then the ice broke and he fell through. Dan Hill says, "He was scared. I'm pretty sure he wanted to get out of the water."
This was Dan Hill's first day with Fire Station 29 and he was the lucky one chosen to go get the dog. He says, "I believe city parks, the water is roughly four feet deep. So they decided to send the tall guy, and that was me."
He strapped on his waders, but the water was a little higher than he expected. He says, "They came up to lower chest. The water came up a little higher. I got a little wet but it was worth it to save the dog."
Hill says the dog helped him out a little once he got close. He says, "He was actually kinda coming towards me. I think he knew what I was out there to do. And I think he was happy to see me. I just threw him in the little basket we had and they pulled him in."
When asked if he was prepared for this type of thing, Hill says, "The squad does train for things like this. They're a specialty unit so they do special training for water rescues or technical rescues."
But usually for humans, Hill says, "This is the last thing I expected."
The dog was treated with oxygen and an IV. He was shivering but at least he's alive.
The local humane society now has the dog. We're told it had a collar, but nothing that indicated who the owner is.
They're holding off on putting the dog up for adoption to try to find the owner.