PORTAGE (WKZO-AM) — Several agencies swung into action after a man reported he was stuck in the mud near Sugar Loaf Lake, somewhere at the end of Rolling Hill Avenue in Portage on Saturday.
The news release gives no clue who the man was or what he was doing there, only that somehow he had gotten stuck up to his waist and could not free himself.
They used his cell phone to triangulate his position but could only get a general location somewhere in a swampy area on the west side of the lake. Fire units were the first to respond.
Then, public safety officers, LIFE Ambulance EMT, DNR personnel and citizens joined the search. An hour and 20 minutes after the search began, a team of three firefighters found the victim.
By that time his cell phone had used up its battery life and he had lost contact with 911. It took them 20 minutes to get him out of the muck and haul him to dry land.
By then it was dark and no other teams were able to locate them to help extricate the victim from the remote area.
It took them 50 minutes to follow the lights and the sirens and reach a DNR Vehicle.
They used that vehicle to get the victim to an ambulance, who transported the victim to the hospital for evaluation.
His condition has not been released, but they are calling it a successful rescue.
