Bystander’s quick thinking saves deer from death in the nick of time

A fawn accidentally fell into a canal of fast-moving water and was facing imminent death by drowning before a quick-thinking bystander came up with a plan to thwart the tragedy at the last second.

The incident occurred in a canal near the Equestrian Park in North Ogden, Utah, with Rachel Kunz capturing the extraordinary rescue in video. She shared the footage with KSL 5 TV.

The fawn, being swept down the canal, futilely attempted to climb out, but the wall was too steep and the rushing water too fast. Nearing a small waterfall that led to a metal grate where it would surely get caught up and drown, the deer turned around and tried to swim upstream but to no avail.

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Fortunately, a good Samaritan, presumed to be Kunz’s husband Dean, rushed to a foot bridge that spanned the canal just ahead of the grate and got down in the prone position to intercept the fawn. As the deer approached, he reached down and grabbed it by the ear and pulled it up and out of the canal, just in the nick of time.

“There are still heroes out there!!” one Facebook commenter wrote, echoing what most were writing about the rescue. “Thanks to all that show so much love to all of our earthly friends!!”