Children playing on ice can be a recipe for disaster. On March 5, 2006, the Tonawanda Fire Department received a call that two children were playing on the ice. Moments later this call was upgraded. The children had fallen through.
Assistant Chief Daniel E. Marohn raced to the scene and was the first to arrive. Marohn knew he had to act quickly. He grabbed a tree branch and held it out to the children for them to grab on to. The branch soon broke. He knew the children couldn't wait. Marohn was forced to crawl out onto the ice to reach them. He was able to reach one of the children by the pant leg but the ice fell beneath him and Marohn also fell into the icy water. Fortunately he was able to lift the two children onto a solid ice patch. The children were brought safely to shore by an assisting police officer and firefighters now on the scene.
As a result of the heroic efforts of Assistant Chief Daniel E. Marohn, two young lives were saved, and the children have learned a lesson they won’t soon forget.
