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Deputy in kayak rushes to save dog in Florida canal, video shows. ‘Hero without a cape’

Body camera footage shows a Florida deputy kayaking to get near a dog struggling in a canal, then jumping in to save it.
Body camera footage shows a Florida deputy kayaking to get near a dog struggling in a canal, then jumping in to save it. Flagler County Sheriff's Office Facebook post

Deputies rescued a struggling dog from a canal in Florida, a sheriff’s office said.

“Just toss me out,” said Flagler County Deputy Alex Wolfe as other deputies pushed his kayak into the water.

A little earlier, the sheriff’s office had received a call about a dog that appeared to be in “distress” in a canal on Palm Coast, according to an Oct. 29 Facebook post.

When authorities arrived, they found a neighbor in a kayak trying to rescue the dog, the sheriff’s office said.

But the neighbor was unsuccessful, so Wolfe borrowed the kayak to give the rescue mission another shot. Body camera footage shows him using the kayak to get close to the dog, then jumping in the water, taking the dog in his arms and carrying it safely back to shore.

“He’s got a training collar, yeah. Somebody’s looking for him,” one of the deputies said when the dog was on land.

The sheriff’s office said the dog was turned over to Animal Control after being rescued, then reunited with its owner later on.

More than 200 people commented on the rescue video, many praising Wolfe for his heroism.

“That was a great save!!! Deputy Wolfe didn’t even hesitate,” one person commented.

“Who knows how long that poor baby was struggling out there and thank you to the universe that there was no alligators in there,” another person said. “That officer is a hero without a cape!”

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Natalie Demaree
mcclatchy-newsroom
Natalie Demaree is a service journalism reporter covering Mississippi for McClatchy Media. She holds a master’s in journalism from Columbia Journalism School and a bachelor’s in journalism and political science with a specialization in African and African American Studies from the University of Arkansas. 
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