A teenager and an adult were rescued after they tried ice fishing and fell through the ice into a lake near Cary, resulting in a neighbor also falling through while attempting rescue Tuesday afternoon.
The Cary Fire Protection District responded around 4:38 p.m. Tuesday to the 6200 block of Londonderry Drive in unincorporated Cary for a report of a water rescue.
Cary Fire Protection District Public Information Officer Alex Vucha said 911 callers reported people calling out for help on Lake Killarney.
Two off-duty firefighters who were in the area arrived shortly after the initial dispatch.
They observed two people approximately 50-75 feet from shore who had fallen through the ice while attempting to go ice fishing, Vucha said.
Both victims were struggling to keep their heads above water.
Vucha said one of the off-duty firefighters entered the water through the ice and made a rescue of a teenage victim.
Fire crews arrived moments later and began coordinated rescue operations to remove the adult victim from the water.
Both victims were rescued within approximately eight minutes of the fire department’s arrival.
Vucha said a third person, who was a neighboring resident, had attempted to assist prior to the arrival of emergency crews and also fell through the ice.
He was able to self-rescue and return to shore on his own before being evaluated by paramedics.
The two initial victims and the neighbor were evaluated at the scene and transported to local hospitals with minor injuries, Vucha said.
One of the off-duty firefighters was evaluated at the scene but did not require transport. Fire crews left the scene by 5:45 p.m.
The Cary Fire Protection District said the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office, the Fox River Grove Fire Protection District, the Algonquin – Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District, the Nunda Rural Fire Protection District and 911 dispatchers assisted.
The fire district said they remind the public that ice conditions can change rapidly and are often unsafe even when they appear solid.