EXCLUSIVE: Local Woman Risks Life To Save Man From Sinking Boat
By Natasha Brown
GLADWYNE, Pa., (CBS) -- A local woman puts her on safety on the line to save the life of a stranger.
She talked exclusively with Eyewitness News reporter Natasha Brown about how she jumped into a chilly river to help a boater in trouble.
"Literally the moment I saw the boat lifting out of the water I just instinctively started walking toward it," rescuer Cara Hornung said.
Whether it was Cara Hornung's years as an EMT or the fact that she's a fourth generation firefighter, whatever the reason, the instinct's to save a boater's life came without reservation.
Cara was out playing fetch with her dogs in flat rock park in Gladwyne when she saw a boater along the Schuylkill River in trouble, his boat was sinking and there was little time to act.
"He started yelling 'I can't swim I can't swim please help me,' I just threw off my boots got in the water," she said.
Cara jumped into the bone chilling 40 degree waters of the Schuylkill, her Chocolate Labrador Retrievers, Lucy and Olive right behind her.
"I saw the one dog paddling towards the guy so I grabbed onto them, I swim with them all the time so they're kinda use to that," she said.
Cara says she isn't usually in this area of the park but on that day she decided to come here, turns out she was in the right place at the right time.
"She said I just had to rescue someone," Cara's father James Hornung said.
Cara's father Jim is fire chief with Union Fire Company in Bala Cynwyd. He snapped these photo's shortly after the rescue.
"Cara's always been a very caring and unconcerning about herself type of person," her father said.
While Cara humbly shakes off the title of hero, her actions rose to that level, unselfishly risking her life to save the life of a stranger.
"He said thank you and said he was really glad that he was gonna be able to go home and kiss his children and his wife," Cara said.
