Norristown, PA, officers rescued a man and his 12-year-old daughter Labor Day after the father accidentally drove his truck into the Schuylkill River.
Officer Ed Butterworth, an avid swimmer, dove into the river after taking off his equipment and vest and pulled the man and girl to safety. Other officers who remained on shore and provided support, Fox 29 reports.
"When I got there, she was in the back of the truck screaming," Officer Butterworth explained. "Yelling, crying. Not much communicating, just seeing the panic and fear she had. She can’t swim. I was telling her to hold on to the tailgate. She falls right into the water."
Officer Butterworth continued, "Boom! I go in. I couldn’t find him, he’s under the water. I’m calmly asking her, ‘Where is he, where is he?’ He pops up. So she was holding him down, so she can breathe, which is, I think, just normal for anyone who was panicking like people do when near drowning. I grabbed his shirt. I was pulling both of them, swimming backwards. It was a lot."
"I was very confident when I went in, not realizing the actual dangers itself. When I got out there, no safety equipment on, nothing," Officer Butterworth added. "It could’ve been a disaster for all three of us."
Norristown, PA, Police Officer Ed Butterworth discusses his rescue of a father and daughter from the Schuylkill River.Norristown PD video screenshot
