College Rowing Team Rescues Woman from Mississippi River

A group of four people from the University of Minnesota rowing team set out on the Mississippi River for a practice row. Little did they know, they would be hailed heroes when the group when they went on to rescue an injured woman from the water.

At approximately 7:15 am on Wednesday morning, the two university rowers and two coaches spotted a woman tangled in some trees along the shoreline. They immediately made their way to her for a rescue. Rowing Head Coach, Wendy Davis said:

She was in the trees in the water, about waist high. We went over and asked if she needed help and she said she did. The current was really strong so it was tough.

Fortunately, Davis was in a motorized boat following the rowers, so the group first threw a life vest to the woman. Then Davis was able to get the boat close enough to rescue the stranded woman from the trees. Davis told CBS Minnesota the rescue was not easy, even with a motor-powered boat:

We threw her a life jacket and then swung around to the downstream side of the trees, but we had to work our way in there.

KMSP-TV reports that the rowers called for help upon retrieving the woman from the water and made their way back to the Minneapolis Rowing Club’s dock to meet paramedics. The woman was suffering the effects of hypothermia, had a broken leg, and possibly broken ribs. She was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center for treatment of her injuries.

The rowing team was just happy they were in the right place at the right time. Assistant Coach, Peter Morgan told the Star Tribune:

I can’t imagine her lasting much longer. There are not many people on the river. We are very thankful we were there.

There weren’t many people on the river for good reason. Conditions on the Mississippi River have been so dangerous, due to high water, that the University of Minnesota coaches have had to abandon the university’s boathouse. Instead, for safety reasons, they’ve been using the Minneapolis Rowing Club’s boathouse, which is three miles downriver.

This isn’t the first time rowers have come to the rescue. Just a few weeks ago, several rowers rescued a baby after her stroller fell into a river. The incident happened during a British Dragon Boat Racing Association event on the River Exe in Devon, England.

In regards to the woman on the Mississippi, no report has been released on how she fell into the water. However, one thing is for sure, the woman is very lucky she fell in the area the rowing team was able to make the rescue.