A fishing trip on the St. Louis River in Duluth turned into a dramatic rescue mission for David Jones, whose quick thinking and bravery saved the life of a stranded 6-year-old boy. The entire heart-wrenching ordeal was captured on Jones's GoPro video, shedding light on the terrifying situation the child found himself in.
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On July 5, Jones was fishing when he spotted the young boy, who was alone in the middle of the river, panicking and terrified despite wearing a life jacket.
"It was the sound of a child that was screaming who was in complete panic, complete fear, and just something that was almost indescribable or something that you would honestly hear from a horror movie," Jones recounted.
Jones, a former police officer, relied on his law enforcement training to spring into action, potentially saving the child's life.
"Are you gonna be able to make it into shore? Do you need some help?" Jones asked the frightened boy in the video.
Utilizing his background as a behavioral health technician, Jones kept the child calm and helped him grasp onto his kayak, safely guiding him to shore.
"You're strong, right? OK. All right. So I just need to be strong for a few more seconds," Jones reassured the boy during the rescue.
Once they reached shore, Jones sought assistance from a nearby resident, asking for a towel while they called 911 and waited for paramedics to arrive.
Though hailed as a hero by many online, Jones remains humble, stating, "You got a kid that's bobbing up and down in the middle of the water on the St. Louis river. It's 57 degrees outside, so I'm not sure what the water temperatures were."
According to Duluth police, the boy's parent informed officers that he lost hold of a rope attached to the boat, and the wind and currents prevented him from swimming to safety.
Jones, deeply concerned for the child's well-being as he showed signs of hypothermia, posted the video on social media to raise awareness about water safety.
Reflecting on the incident, Jones emphasized the danger posed by the river's undercurrents, recalling a tragic incident last year where a father drowned while attempting to save his daughter and another child.
"The current was going one way and the undercurrent was going another way, and there's a lot of individuals who aren't aware of how strong these undercurrents can't be because they're not visible from the surface," Jones explained.
Despite the challenging conditions, the young boy held on, displaying incredible resilience throughout the ordeal.
"I still hope and pray that the kid is OK every single day, and I hope that he can recover from this incident and be fine and also hope that he never is put in this position again by another adult," Jones said.
Duluth police confirmed to FOX 9 that no charges would be filed in connection with the incident.
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