Sayreville Firefighters Nab PETA Award for Rescuing Deer From Frozen Pond

SAYREVILLE, NJ - A Compassionate Fire Department Award is on its way from PETA to the Sayreville Fire Department, which came to the rescue of a young deer that had fallen through the ice in Waterworks Park on December 16.

As Patch reported, South Amboy Animal Control had spotted the deer bobbing in the icy water and alerted South Amboy Fire Prevention, which called in Sayreville Fire Department's ice-rescue team. The team had been training for two years — but members had not yet put their skills to use. It took 30 minutes for firefighters Chris Mierzwiak, Ray Deecken, and Mike Marcinyck Jr. to pull the deer out of the water using special ice-rescue suits, ropes, a flotation device, and a sled. After warming up the deer with a blanket, they released him back into the woods.

"These firefighters were ready and determined to put their special training to work to save one of South Amboy's most vulnerable residents," says PETA Vice President Colleen O'Brien. "PETA hopes their bravery and kindness will inspire people everywhere to come to the aid of animals in need."

"When I got there the deer was about 400 feet out and it was barely above the water," Chief Vincent Waranowicz of the Sayreville Fire Department told Patch at the time. "You could tell it was fighting and struggling. It kept trying to get up on top of the ice but it couldn't."

PETA — whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to abuse in any way" — is sending the Sayreville fire department a framed certificate, a box of delicious vegan cookies, and a copy of "The Engine 2 Diet," a Texas firefighter's 28-day plan for staying in prime firefighting shape by eating plant-based meals.

Past Patch coverage:

Deer Falls Through Ice, Rescued in South Amboy (VIDEO)