Trapped under water

Wood removed from stream: senior drowned helplessly

On Thursday evening, a 94-year-old man from St. Leonhard/Freistadt (Upper Austria) used a winch to remove spruce trunks from a stream. He probably fell into the water accidentally, became entangled in a chain and drowned helplessly.

The 94-year-old from St. Leonhard was busy removing tree trunks from a stream in his home village at around 5.15 p.m. on Thursday. To do this, he attached the wood to chains and pulled it out of the water using a winch.

Fell headfirst into the stream
The pensioner is believed to have fallen headfirst into the stream and was found lifeless by his wife. The 90-year-old immediately alerted the emergency services, tried to free her husband herself and administer first aid.

Difficult rescue
Arriving police officers rushed to her aid, but it was difficult to rescue her because the man's legs had become trapped under water. Together with the crew of the rescue helicopter, the 94-year-old was finally pulled out of the stream, but the emergency doctor could only determine that he had died.