Fearless police officer jumps into freezing canal in St Petersburg and crawls over cracking ice to rescue helpless man
- Andrey Postnikov recorded clip from the side of the Griboedov Canal in Russia
- Stricken man, who appears to have fallen from bridge, lies motionless in the ice
- Officer heroically pulls him from water before he is taken to Mariinsky Hospital
This is the heart-stopping moment a police officer launched himself into freezing waters to rescue a man who had got into difficulty.
Andrey Postnikov recorded the dramatic encounter from a walkway alongside the Griboedov Canal in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Footage shows the unnamed officer heroically dropping into the water before edging across the fragile sheet of ice to reach the helpless man.
Andrey Postnikov recorded the dramatic encounter from a walkway alongside the Griboedov Canal in Saint Petersburg, Russia, as the officer lowered himself down from the railings
The man, wearing a raincoat and carrying a backpack, appears to have fallen from the bridge above and is lying motionless on the ice which has started to crack.
Onlookers shout and point to him to nearby police officers.
Dozens more pedestrians start to gather as one of the policemen strides into shot.
He takes off his coat and hat before clambering over the railings.
The officer completely lets go of the rail and drops into the canal before sliding across the ice on his stomach in order to spread his weight
He reaches across the ice and starts to drag the half-submerged man towards the canal’s edge
He lowers himself down a few feet before completely letting go of the rail and dropping into the canal.
The officer then slides on to his stomach to spread his weight evenly across the fragile sheet of ice.
He reaches the man who has started moving but has become partially submerged in the water.
The police officer shouts at the man to give him his hands before he starts to drag him back toward the edge of the canal.
The pair inch closer toward the outer wall as the policeman’s colleagues lower a tether for the man to cling on to while they fetch a ladder
The pair inch closer toward the outer wall as the policeman’s colleagues lower a tether for the man to cling on to while they fetch a ladder.
The officer gives the man a leg up before those waiting on the bridge grab hold of him and haul him back over the railings.
Andrey later said that after the man was pulled out of the water he was taken to the Mariinsky Hospital.
The footage was originally recorded on February 16 but has only recently been shared online.