Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/man-dies-saving-dog/
A father died in a tragic accident rescuing his daughter’s dog from an icy pond.
According to Mirror Online, 66-year-old Iain Morrell, a beloved husband and father, attempted to save his daughter’s dog, Simba, who’d fallen into a frozen pond. During the rescue, Morrell allegedly fell through the ice and into the frozen water. Tragically, Morrell didn’t survive the rescue, but he was able to save Simba.
The accident occurred in Bo’Ness, Scotland. According to the Daily Record, Morrel tried to walk across the ice to get to Simba, who was struggling in the water, when he fell through and ended up in the icy water himself.
Rescuers arrived on the scene and attempted to save Morrel, but he sadly died in the hospital just hours after the rescue.
According to McGill Media, a local police officer said, “Around 12:45 pm on Friday, 12 February 2021, police received a report of a man and a dog in the water at the Curling Pond, Kinneil Woods, Bo’ness. The man was recovered from the water by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and taken by helimed to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where he later died. The dog was recovered from the water…”
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His heart-broken daughter, Alana Morreel, shared a tribute to her Facebook of her “one-in-a-million” father.
In the post, she described him as “a popular and loved by many man, he was 1 in a million and completely irreplaceable.” She wrote:
“To my best friend, Dad, I’ll forever be your wain and my life will never be the same without you in it. I hope you can be with me throughout my next milestones and know how much I want you there but just not in the way that I hoped. I hope I make you proud and I wish I could have had one last chance to thank you for everything throughout these past 20 years (which weren’t enough). The once in a lifetime holidays you’ve taken me on and for driving me 5+ hours to figure skating competitions, never leaving the side of the rink. 20 years of memories to last a lifetime.”
She continued, recalling how they used to sing a special song in the car on the way to school and go swimming on the weekends. She remembered how they enjoyed blue slush drinks and banana milkshakes together and reminisced on not being able to relive those moments again. She said, “You made me the person I am today by showing me to never give up and always do my best. I am truly heartbroken that I’ll never hear your voice again or have anyone to reassure me through my worries and troubles or rescue me at 4 am. I still hope that you will come through that door and scream ‘MAAAA WAIN’. I’d do anything in this world for that to happen and I’d never let you go again.”
She concluded her post by thanking her father for rescuing Simba. She said, “One last huge thank you for risking your life-saving Simba. I know how much you loved him and I truly hope a part of you lives within him as you loved him with all your heart, just as much as I do.”
Alana shared photos of Simba on her Instagram:
Simba can be a living reminder of Morrel’s selflessness.
Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog
