When a pair of Canadians got stranded on the ice on Lake St. Clair in southwestern Ontario on Tuesday, an American team with a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter ended up coming to their rescue.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Christina Silva says their team, the Dolphin helicopter team, got the call around 3:45 p.m., and the helicopter departed just after 4 p.m.

Flying to the scene and overhead, they sent a member of their team down to the ice via hoist, who lifted both men back to the helicopter one at a time.

“They were both talking to me pretty well. They knew exactly what was going on. They were just happy just to get picked up and get off that ice floe,” said Edmund Bizorik, the team’s “rescue swimmer” who went down to the ice.

There’s no financial cost to the stuck men for the rescue, the team confirmed: “It’s not like a one way relationship where the U.S. is only giving to Canada, it’s a co-operation,” said Lt. Connor Riley.

“So I think had this been a different scenario and there was a Canadian Coast Guard rescue asset near an American, I’m confident that there would be no difference.”

  • Mantzy81@aussie.zone
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    1 day ago

    “we reached out to Lt. Christina Silva for comment but she is currently on administrative leave following this incident”

    /s (but possible, given the current US administration)

  • Typotyper@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    I was expecting them to be sent to a concentration camp and not returned to Windsor…well parts do look third world