Page 2 - Sergeant Moriarty News Today

>> pat yelled for them to pull, and ill tell you what. it was the quickest ever i thought i would to go up an embankment, but it must have been the adrenaline on top because we slid out of there in a matter of seconds. >> and minutes later, sergeant moriarty is pulled to safety too. its a chaotic scene, but now both on solid ground, the two men who just risked their lives to save another search for each other in the crowd. >> we shook hands, and we -- it was just an understanding that only peopl...

Carella and moriarty into the water. these two men, whod met only in passing before, know theyll need to trust each other. >> we shook hands and looked each other in the eye and i think we understood, im there to save your life and youre there to save mine. >> as theyre lowered into the water, they both have two ropes attached to their harnesses. one ties them to a small shrub on the shore, and the other is controlled by about 20 rescuers. they will use all of their strength to keep those men fr...

Captain kevin caffery hovers above, trying to get a rescue basket close enough for the man to grasp. >> we made four or five attempts to get him with the rescue basket. we got pretty close to him. the problem is with the treacherous air current, it was almost impossible to control the aircraft. >> at some point he said, im running out of power. were not going to be able to do this. >> another failed attempt. the chopper returns to land so the team can come up with plan "c." and in the water, car...

Arrives from the air. captain kevin caffery and his co-pilot hover above, trying to get a rescue basket close enough for the man to grasp. >> we made four or five attempts to get him with the rescue basket. we got pretty close to him. the problem is with the treacherous air currents, it was almost impossible to control the aircraft. >> at some point he said, im running out of power. were not going to be able to do this. >> another failed attempt. the chopper returns to land so the team can come ...

Moriarty the rope they need to reach the man, who is still holding onto that life ring just a few feet from the edge of the falls. >> when we first got up to him, the water was literally running completely over his face. i could see his eyes -- he was looking up at me underwater, looking at me. it was surreal. >> i never will forget this as long as i live because his arm was outstretched. hes almost losing the ring. pat reaches under and grabs the only thing that he could, the fingers that are o...

I said to gary, if we lose our footing, well end up under the ice under the water, and that was the last thing i wanted to have happen. >> moriarty cant know it yet, but he would soon face his greatest fear. but for now, they inch out into the raging waters, hoping to get the man a life ring. onshore, a rescue worker finds a suicide note from the man now fighting fiercely for his life. but carella and moriarty know nothing about the note, and theyre able to make contact with the victim. >> we wa...

His arms and legs around the man and braces himself. >> pat yelled for them to pull, and ill tell you what, it was the quickest ever i thought i would to go up an embankment, but it must have been the adrenaline on top because we slid out of there in a matter of seconds. >> and minutes later, sergeant moriarty is pulled to safety too. its a chaotic scene, but now both on solid ground, the two men who just risked their lives to save another search for each other in the crowd. >> we shook hands, a...

Formation on land. hes waist deep in frigid water. >> when i saw the victim standing almost in waist-deep water right at the brink of the falls, the hair on the back of my neck went up. >> moriarty immediately calls the fire department and the helicopter rescue unit. he also calls the power company upriver and asks them to use their dam to lower the water level. within minutes, niagara firefighter gary carella arrives on the scene. >> where the victim was standing is almost impossible to fathom....

Finally, we have him. we have something connected to him. hes not on his own anymore. and we start to bring him in. >> as carella and moriarty watch their peers pull the guy to shore, the feeling of relief is short-lived. if standing feet from the edge of niagara falls isnt dangerous enough, almost unbelievably, the stakes are about to go up even higher. the man slips under that menacing ice shelf, the very thing moriarty feared most. >> upon being dragged underneath the ice flow, the danger lev...

To hypothermia. >> the decision is made to lower carella and moriarty into the water. these two men, whod met only in passing before, know theyll need to trust each other. >> we shook hands and looked each other in the eye and i think we understood, im there to save your life and youre there to save mine. >> as theyre lowered into the water, they both have two ropes attached to their harnesses. one ties them to a small shrub on the shore, and the other is controlled by about 20 rescuers. they wi...