Kensington's Viviane Arzoumanian was walking three dogs on January 2 in Prospect Park when her 5-year-old standard poodle Pasha dashed off after a bird across the frozen lake, then fell through the ice. Sadly, rescue efforts failed. In an interview with , she admits knowing that having the dogs off-leash was prohibited at that hour, and places no blame on the rescue workers, but she does express concern at the lack of preparedness for this sort of emergency:
Arzoumanian called 911, and after some confusion pinpointing her location in the park, a slew of rescue workers arrived.
But they didn’t have the proper equipment to go safely out onto the icy lake. They stood helplessly as the barking weakened, and then stopped, according to Arzoumanian.
Asked if she blamed the city for not preparing rescue workers better for the situation, Arzoumanian said no. But she does hope Pasha’s death will inspire Park officials to make some changes.
"It’s not like I’m mad at anybody. It’s just sort of shocking, on reflection, of how ill-prepared (for an ice rescue) the park is,” she said. She added, “I just would have liked more options available to try to save her."
The Parks Department says that its personnel are trained in ice rescues, and that it will "consider any ideas Arzoumanian submitted in writing" about how to handle future emergencies better.
We've still got a lot of winter left, so please be mindful when you're at the park with dogs and small children!
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