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'The right place at the right time:' ACSO deputies honored for saving woman from sinking SUV

Dylan Sklar and Sean Dalrymple dove into the icy water of a pond to reach the trapped woman.

MERIDIAN, Idaho — Two Ada County Sherriff's Office deputies who saved a woman from her sinking SUV in a pond along Eagle Road were honored Tuesday night.

The rescue happened Sunday morning after the 51-year-old woman lost control of her car and crashed into a pond in Meridian.

Deputy Dylan Sklar said he was headed to the dispatch center when he came upon a head-on crash at Eagle Road and Pine Avenue.

"One of the vehicles had gone off the side of the road and into a pond, and so, I called it over the radio," he said.

Sklar said the woman’s SUV had gone over the curb and spun onto the ice-covered pond. Then, the ice cracked, and the car slowly started sinking with the woman still inside. 

Before jumping into the ice-cold water to help the woman, Sklar called for backup.

"I called that out and realized I had to get in the water as quickly as possible, so I started to take off my belt and got in the water,” said Sklar.

A few minutes later, Deputy Sean Dalrymple arrived to help Sklar.

"I just happened to be at the Ada County dispatch center, so I was about a mile away, and at that point he said he had a car in the water and my first thought was I need to be there and help him out,” Dalrymple said.

Both deputies stripped their gear off and swam through the pond to help get the lone occupant out of the car, but it wasn’t easy.

Credit: Ada County Sheriff's Office
Submerged SUV

"At one point she was pinned between the front seats as we were trying to pull her out," Dalrymple said. "We were able to get her out of that and pull her out of the car and then take her back to shore."

After they brought the woman back to shore, paramedics arrived and took over her care. The Ada County Sherriff’s Office says the 51-year-old woman was taken to the hospital but did not have any life-threatening injuries.

During Tuesday’s Ada County Board of Commissioner’s meeting, both deputies were honored for their heroic actions and saving the woman from the icy pond. They both received a Certificate of Commendation, but for the two deputies, they say they are just happy to be able to help their community.

“It's just second nature. Somebody needs help and you go and help them,” said Sklar.

"It's great to be recognized for it, but at the same time I feel like I was just at the right place at the right time and had the opportunity to get someone out and save someone's life,” said Dalrymple.

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