Minnesota Man Saves Deer Stuck in Frozen River, Names it β€˜Miss Ice River'

Steven Peterson told NBC Chicago he thought about calling 911, but because he is deaf he feared communication problems may have stalled the deer's rescue

The story of a man who saved a deer's life by pulling the animal out of an icy Minnesota river is being circulated widely online. 

Steven Peterson, of Duluth, explains in sign language in the video above that he was driving around Monday when he saw the deer struggling to survive in the Kettle River in northern Pine County. 

"I felt obligated to help her, so I pulled over, trekked through the woods, and crawled out onto the ice," the 50-year-old signs in the video. "I used a rope to pull her out. I am so glad she is safe. Now we need to find her mother."

In the video, he said in sign language after petting the deer that he was going to name it "Miss Ice River."

You can watch the rescue in a separate video below:

Peterson said to NBC Chicago in an email that he considered calling 911, but decided that the process might have taken too long.

"I knew calling in emergency services would waste time that the deer did not have," Peterson wrote. "As a deaf individual, communicating with the police would have taken too long."

"Also, if I did call 911, the time it would have taken to get the correct personnel and equipment out to the deer's location would have potentially not been fast enough," Peterson added. "I figured that with my own brain and common sense, I could do it myself."

Peterson told NBC Chicago the animal seemed in good condition when he left.

"The animal was shaking and shivering initially, but after it had been out of the water for a few minutes, it began to calm down," Peterson wrote. "I did help it stand up, it walked a short distance away from me, and then sat back down gently. The deer started to lick at its wounds, which were not severe. I stayed with that deer for about an hour. We both sat there trying to warm ourselves up. I could tell from the deer's behavior that it was going to survive the ordeal, so I knew it would be fine to part ways."

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Steven Peterson

According to 911.gov, deaf and hearing-impaired callers can use a teletypewriter (TTY) text telephone device or a telecommunications device to contact 911. The Federal Communications Commission also says that some areas in the United States provide a text-to-911 service, allowing the public to send a text message to a dispatcher to respond to emergencies.

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