When the Brausen family called the Humane Society on Dec. 19, 2015, looking for their lost yellow lab, they received the worst response a pet owner could imagine: they were told that something had happened, and they needed to call the police to find out more.
Fearing the worst for their beloved family dog, an 11-year-old canine named Charlie, Sue Brausen and her husband, Richard, got in touch with the Little Falls Police Department.
They learned that Charlie had fallen through the ice on the Mississippi River.
During the tragedy, however, the Brausens learned that one man, Officer Rick Heurung of the LFPD, had risked his life to try to save the dog in an act of heroism the Brausens said they will never forget.
Sue Brausen said the cold December day began like many others, when Charlie took off running when let outside, as he had many times.
“He’s done that before. We didn’t think too much of it,” Brausen said.
But this time, Brausen said, the family couldn’t track down where he had gone.
That same day, Heurung responded to a report of a dog barking near the river. He arrived on the scene to find Charlie stuck in open water.
“He was an older dog and couldn’t get back onto the ice without breaking it,” Heurung said.
Thinking fast, Heurung borrowed a boat from a nearby resident and went after Charlie. As he began to break through the frozen river toward the dog, an outlooker alerted him that it was too late — Charlie had already disappeared under the icy water.
“I couldn’t get to him in time,” Heurung said.
Brausen said Heurung himself called to let them know what had happened and express his sympathy.
“He called and told us how sorry he was, and that he was a dog lover himself,” Brausen said.
Although armed with a life jacket, Heurung later found out there was no plug in the boat, making his trek toward open water a life-threatening risk, especially weighed down with full police equipment.
He said that in spite of the danger, he didn’t hesitate to attempt the rescue.
“I didn’t think twice. I would have done it for any dog,” Heurung said. “I would do it again.”
Brausen said that the family got Charlie, a yellow labrador retriever, at 6 months old. At the time of the accident, he had been with the family for more than 10 years and the news of Charlie’s fate was heartbreaking for the family.
“It’s hard no matter how they go,” Brausen said. “It was really devastating.”
However, Heurung’s efforts to save her family’s dog were a silver lining, a reason to hope for the future in an otherwise tragic situation.
“I couldn’t believe he risked his life,” Brausen said. “To me, he’s a hero. He really is. That can’t be repaid by any means.”