LAKE OF THE OZARKS, Mo. — A white tailed deer, stuck on the ice in the middle of a cove, was rescued by firefighters on Jan. 18.
 
Amid a deep winter chill, Lake of the Ozarks coves were frozen, and the Gravois Fire Protection District says a deer apparently was overconfident about her ability to take a short-cut to the other side.
 
The GFPD received a call on Thursday afternoon, Jan. 18, from a concerned property owner, who had spotted the deer trapped on ice, off of Route P, in Gravois Mills. Five firefighters responded.
 
According to GFPD Fire Chief Ed Hancock, the small doe had walked out on the partially frozen lake and was unable to get enough traction to walk back to the shore.
 
“Wild animals are the most challenging rescues because they can get frightened and hurt you, especially a full-sized deer,” Chief Hancock said. “Many times they need to be tranquilized in order to keep them calm enough to rescue.” 
 
Firefighters, knowing the ice was too thin to support their body weight, used a rope to lasso the doe around the neck, and pulled her to safety. “She wore herself out trying to walk on the slippery ice,” Chief Hancock said. “Hooves just don’t give good traction."
 
Once they pulled her to the shore, firefighters carried her to where she could walk, released the rope, and the deer scampered off into the woods.
 
CHIEF: People Might Not Be So Lucky
 
Chief Hancock warns citizens not to walk out on the Lake of the Ozarks until the thickness of the ice can be measured and verified as strong enough. “A small farm pond is different,” Chief Hancock explained. “There is no moving water. But, the water levels on the Lake of the Ozarks change, due to generation at the dam and water flow between the Truman and Bagnell Dams. That makes ice thickness questionable.” 
 
He added, “If the lake levels have decreased since the ice formed, and there is a flow into the channel, the ice off the current could be frozen solid, but two steps further, and you could hit thin ice and fall through, and you might not be as lucky as that deer.”
Since the deer's rescue, the Lake has seen a warm spell. Sunday brought a record high temperature and after Sunday night's heavy rains, cove ice has already begun to melt or even disappear.
But winter is far from over, and as coves ice over, the Chief warns against walking on the Lake, and has advice for anyone who finds themselves in the unfortunate circumstance of falling through the ice.
 
"If someone falls through the ice, the last thing you want to do is get on the ice with them. Call 911, throw them a rope, skid a flat bottom boat out to them, or lay down a ladder. The Lake area has dive teams with special equipment and technical water rescue training. These rescuers use cold-water emersion suits to be able to handle the icy temperatures. It only takes a couple of minutes to lose function and the ability to hold on and grab on to something, once you are immersed in icy waters." 
 
"Once you pull yourself on top of the ice, try to spread out horizontally as much as possible and drag yourself, in a crawling position, across the top of the ice to the shore.” 

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