Fish & Game employee rescues driver from intake pool
Courtesy of IDFG An SUV rests in the water after crashing into the intake pool at Niagra Springs Fish Hatchery in south-central Idaho. A Fish and Game employee was able to pull the driver out to safety before the vehicle sunk. No injuries were reported to the driver or to any fish.
WENDELL — The new year got off to an unusual start at a state fish hatchery in south-central Idaho.
When a car crashed Jan. 3 into the intake pool at the Niagra Springs hatchery, Derek Tuttle, an Idaho Fish and Game employee was able to rescue the driver before the vehicle sank.
“Quick thinking and bravery on his behalf likely saved the driver’s life,” wrote Josh Royce, a senior regional conservation officer, in a press release.
Tuttle was adjusting the water at the hatchery when he witnessed the crash.
“I’m just glad I was there to help the young lady out of the SUV,” Tuttle said. “Also like to thank Rick Foster and the rest of the Idaho Power crew, the local first responders and their towing crew for their quick, careful and safe removal of the SUV out of the intake.”
Niagara Springs Hatchery, in the town of Wendell, between Twin Falls and Boise, is owned and financed by Idaho Power Company, and operated and staffed by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. With a capacity to rear nearly two million steelhead smolts annually, it is one of America’s largest privately-owned steelhead rearing facilities.
Hatchery employees worked a late evening following the crash to make sure the fish were safe in the event of an oil leak or obstructed water flow to the facility until the vehicle could be removed.
There were no serious injuries to the people involved or the fish.