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
- The man, who appears to have fallen from bridge, is lying motionless on the ice
- Officer heroically pulls him from water before he was 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.
The unnamed police officer heroically dropped into the water before edging across the fragile sheet of ice in order to save 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
In the video, a man wearing a raincoat and a backpack, who appears to have fallen from the bridge above, can be seen lying motionless on the ice which has started to crack.
Onlookers shout and point to him in an attempt to get the attention of a group of officers who are standing nearby.
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 to assess how to reach the water’s surface.
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 scuttles across the surface before he starts to drag the helpless man back toward the edge of the canal
He eventually 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 in an attempt to spread his weight evenly across the fragile sheet of ice.
He scuttles across the surface before reaching the man who has now started to move but who 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.