LYNNWOOD, Wash. — Two 15-year-old boys fell through ice at Lake Serene in Lynnwood on Wednesday afternoon.
"They were so far out you couldn't see them," firefighter Dave Erickson said. "Their heads were barely above water."
Erickson, from Snohomish Fire District 1, was the first rescuer to race across the lake. One of the teens was able to get to shore on his own, but the other was struggling.
"He had gone under several times and I wasn't sure if I was going to have to dive for him or if I was going to be able to reach him on the surface," he said.
Video from Chopper 7 showed Erickson and his partner in protective dry suits as they worked to get the other teen to shore.
Both teens were conscious and received medical attention.
Good news! Juveniles rescued from Lake Serene by @SnoCoFire1. Dive team standing down. Please keep kids and pets away from the ice!
— Snohomish Sheriff (@SnoCoSheriff) January 5, 2017
Erickson said the water in the lake is so cold, it takes just a few minutes for someone to get hypothermic. They believe the teen was in the water for at least 20 minutes.
"By the time you're in there for 20 minutes or more, you're just trying to survive-- the thought of extracting yourself is done," he said. "You're just trying to take a few more breaths."
Erickson said the teen was exhausted and trying to tread water.
Henry Batts was at home with the flu on Wednesday and first knew something was wrong when he saw flashling lights in his driveway. Rescuers used his backyard to access the lake closest to the teen.
Batts said he watched and worried about the teen, knowing he'd been in the water for so long.
"It was tough to watch. I thought I didn't know what they were going to pull out of the water," said Batts. He was thankful when he saw the teen was conscious and moving when he was carried through his yard to the aid car.
Both teens were taken to Providence Medical Center for treatment.
Erickson has done plenty of water rescues but never an ice rescue.
"Performing a rescue on ice is vastly more challenging than just in open water," he said.
Mark Nadvornick lives on the lake and glanced out just after the teens fell in.
"Someone was in the water because they were splashing quite a bit," he said.
His surveillance camera, though blurry, shows the flurry of activity.
Minutes later, KIRO 7 saw the teen rushed inside Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, wrapped in a firefighter's jacket.
NOT SAFE to walk on ice you might see on ponds and shorelines after a brief cold snap! Must be colder, longer! #wawx pic.twitter.com/pPNI1aoSUH
— Morgan Palmer (@MorganKIRO7) January 5, 2017
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