WTOP/Washington's Dave Dildine Rescues Drowning Woman From Icy Creek

Dildine

HUBBARD News WTOP/WASHINGTON traffic reporter DAVE DILDINE became a hero when he rescued a woman from drowning in icy water in WASHINGTON's ROCK CREEK PARK SUNDAY evening.

According to an extensive report at WTOP.COM, DILDINE, a photographer as well as a reporter, had gone to the park to get a shot of BOULDER BRIDGE in the snow when he heard faint noises and screaming and saw a woman drowning in BROAD BRANCH CREEK.  After calling to the woman, SARAH KIRKPATRICK, to swim towards him, DILDINE tried walking out on the ice to help her and fell in, but was able to grab the woman's jacket by the collar and swim back to the ice sheet, pulling her to safety and calling 911.  With response delayed due to the weather, DILDINE tried to use his own body heat to keep KIRKPATRICK, who was suffering from hypothermia, alive while rescue crews were on the way.  She was taken to the hospital, but DILDINE did not know her identity; going back the following day, he found some of her belongings by the side of the creek, including a cell phone, which offered her identity.  After recovering, KIRKPATRICK came to the WTOP studios for a reunion with DILDINE.

Read the tale of heroism and see videos of the return to the scene and the reunion here.

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