Heartwarming Moment – Students Dangle Themselves to Rescue a Dog That Fell Into a Canal

by Top Retriever · Published 2 March · Updated 5 March

Daring rescue operation

Pups can do so much for us, whether they’re a service dog that can help with mental health issues or a search and rescue dog saving lives during a natural disaster. As hero is as we know they can be, sometimes dogs are the ones who need a helping hand from us. This is the moment a pair of heroic students helped save a dog from a muddy canal in a daring rescue operation. Jack Spencer Furmston and Ben Camphor, both 20, were on the way home from a coffee shop in Manchester when they saw dog owner Batu Akyol struggling with a lead over a wall. The students soon discovered the owner’s dog Sumak had fallen into Ancoats Canal and quickly launched a rescue attempt with the aid of five others.

The daring operation also had a “being in the right place at the right time” factor. The footage shows a group of people suspending Mr Camphor by his legs while he scales the canal wall to reach the dog. The dog can be seen clinging to the wall of the canal, looking panicked as his owner grips him by the lead a few feet above him. Mr Camphor can then be seen stretching out and grabbing Sumak by the collar, lifting the dog out of the canal. The dog scrambles for grip with its rear paws as Mr Camphor manages to get his arms under its front legs, while the band of people above him pull them both back up. Mr Camphor said he suddenly saw a ‘guy with his lead in the river’ and thought he must have been walking a duck. It was only then he realised a dog was stuck in the canal which seemed to be ‘really struggling’.

Team effort!

He added: ‘Everyone was panicking. I couldn’t let that dog down and not help, so I put my jumper down and sprung into action – climbing down first. ‘I’m a dog owner myself, so there wasn’t a chance I was going to leave it on its own but I couldn’t get it the first time.’ Mr Camphor said the dog owner was ‘ecstatic’ and they ran around the canal in celebrationm after it was rescued. Mr Furmston said: ‘The crowd had begun to build, so the tallest person – which was Ben – was flipped upside down and he was able to grab the dog. Watch the video who has since received over 75,000 likes likes and more than 650 comments from users who applauded their efforts.