From left, Belmont firefighters Jim Hayes, Nate Manville and Chris Griffin pose with Betsy Chapin and her dog Finn, who Griffin rescued after falling through the ice Tuesday night. (Jon Decker/The Laconia Daily Sun photo)
Betsy Chapin embraces Belmont firefighter Chris Griffin Wednesday afternoon. Griffin and two other firefighters, Jim Hayes and Nate Manville, rescued Chapin's dog Finn after he fell through the ice on Lake Winnisquam Tuesday night. (Jon Decker/The Laconia Daily Sun photo)
From left, Belmont firefighters Jim Hayes, Nate Manville and Chris Griffin pose with Betsy Chapin and her dog Finn, who Griffin rescued after falling through the ice Tuesday night. (Jon Decker/The Laconia Daily Sun photo)
JDecker
Betsy Chapin embraces Belmont firefighter Chris Griffin Wednesday afternoon. Griffin and two other firefighters, Jim Hayes and Nate Manville, rescued Chapin's dog Finn after he fell through the ice on Lake Winnisquam Tuesday night. (Jon Decker/The Laconia Daily Sun photo)
BELMONT — Finn, a 6-year-old Australian shepherd-poodle mix, learned an important lesson about ice safety Tuesday night after becoming the Belmont Fire department’s first water rescue of 2023.
“We got toned last night around 6:30 or 7, and it came in as a water rescue,” Belmont Fire Chief Michael Newhall said. “It was a dog through the ice.”
Finn’s owner, Betsy Chapin, realized something was wrong after noticing Finn’s absence.
“We have an electric fence. He went through at about 6:30 or 7 last night," Chapin recalled. “I have another dog. She stayed in her spot. She was acting a little weird.”
After realizing Finn had made a successful escape, Chapin called for her missing dog.
“He didn't come, but he kept barking like he wasn’t moving,” Chapin said. “I got in my car to go over to where I thought he might be.”
Shortly after arriving at the nearby Lake Winnisquam, Chapin spotted Finn just over 40 feet from the shoreline.
“I saw him, his eyes were glaring,” Chapin said. “I called 911 and the Belmont Fire Department came.”
According to Chapin, firefighters Nate Manville, Jim Hayes and Lt. Chris Griffin responded to the scene.
Griffin inched his way across the ice toward Finn, anchored to a fellow responder and clad in a specialized cold-water suit.
“When he got close enough to the dog, the ice actually broke underneath him,” Newhall said. “But with the cold water suit on, he was fine.”
Griffin has pulled humans out of the ice before, but this was his first time rescuing a dog.
"He was kinda hanging onto the shelf," Griffin said. "He saw us coming, and he was just kinda waiting and hoping. He was a good boy, let us help him out of the water and get him to shore. I'm glad he's uninjured."
Griffin picked up Finn and brought him back to shore, where he was quickly wrapped and scooped up into Chapin’s car.
“The police department gave him a nice heated blanket,” Chapin laughed. “He acted like nothing was happening, and I’m still upset.”
In the seven years Chapin has lived in the area, this is the first time one of her dogs has fallen through the ice.
“That he escaped, that was the problem right there,” Chapin said. “He has a collar on, first it buzzes, then it’s supposed to shock him. I guess it wasn’t enough of a shock.”
The incident inspired the Belmont Fire Department to issue a warning to other Lakes Region residents about ice conditions.
“The biggest thing we’re worried about is making sure that people understand that due to the warm conditions, many of the water bodies haven’t frozen enough,” Newhall said. “The problem is you have an inch of ice, and with the snow on top of it, people just assume it’s OK to walk on or for ATVs — then you get real problems.”
As for Chapin, she’s just happy to have Finn back safe and sound, ironically thanks to his most obnoxious trait.
“Finn is a very loud barker and it drives me crazy,” Chapin said. “But I’m glad he’s a loud barker now, because if he wasn’t, there’s no way I would have known where was.”
Griffin had further advice for those looking to recreate on or near the shores.
"Make sure it's not super thin, stay away from the open water edges," Griffin noted. "Always make sure you check and tell somebody where you’re going so if you do happen to fall through, at least someone has an idea where you’re at. In this case, bark if you’re Finn."
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.