A freak incident gave a pair of area residents more than they bargained for while walking their dogs last weekend.
Firefighters were called April 16 to rescue a man after he became trapped in an abandoned septic tank after freeing a dog that had fallen in. It happened on private land, east of Seaman Stadium and south of 370 Avenue, in an area described as a popular dog walking spot.
Greg Saulnier and Emily Rawson were walking with their three dogs when one of the dogs went missing.
“All of a sudden my dog went missing,” Rawson said. “We couldn’t see him anywhere.”
After searching the area, Rawson said she heard panicked barking, looked down and realized her dog had fallen into an abandoned septic tank. The opening had been covered by tall grass.
“I saw him in the ground, really far in the ground,” she said.
The dog had fallen about five feet, landing in deep water inside the tank, she said.
“It was really hard to even see him, because it was pitch black in there.”
The dog was growing more and more panicked in the water. Unable to reach it from above ground, Saulnier jumped into action.
He climbed into the tank through a small hole and was able to free the dog, but couldn’t get himself out.
Okotoks Deputy Fire Chief Colin Sager said they were called to the scene at about 8 p.m.
Firefighters used a water rescue harness to pull Saulnier out of the tank. Cold and shaken up, he was otherwise not injured in the incident.
“He was definitely cold. That water was very cold,” Sager said.
Rawson estimates Saulnier was in the water for 20 to 25 minutes and the dog was in for about half an hour.
”We didn't know if (the dog) was going to survive, because he couldn't swim any longer. It took so long for us to even find (him),” Rawson said.
The water in the tank was deep enough that Saulnier could not reach the bottom.
“My boyfriend almost got hypothermia,” she said. “They said another two minutes and it would have been a different story.”
Despite the scary incident, Rawson and Saulnier are glad it turned out well, with no major harm coming to Saulnier or Buck, a collie-cross.
“I think it could have been such a different situation," Rawson said.
They are grateful it happened while they were together, and not to someone on their own.
"I'm glad that it was us together. I'm glad that no one had to experience that alone,” she said, adding that people often use the area to walk dogs.
“It’s a very popular place.”
Sager said there was no lid on the tank and grass was covering the hole in the ground.
“So you'd never know,” he said. “They were just walking their dog and the dog disappeared.”
The fire department is working on mitigating the hazard.
