Benjamin Schmitz thought he won't see his dog Sammy alive again.
The Bernese Mountain Dog fell around 30 meters on a rock face in the Murnauer Moos.
So he was saved.
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Two men and a dog in one boat: Murnau firefighters bring the rescued Sammy to the safe shore.
© Dominik Bartl
The Bernese Mountain Dog Sammy falls in front of his master Benjamin Schmitz in the Murnauer Moos down a 30 meter deep rock face into a lake.
The male is very lucky and only suffers minor injuries.
Men of the Murnau fire brigade rescue Sammy by boat.
The dog owner promises a big "Sammy Party" as soon as the party can start again.
Murnau
- He saw Sammy slip, heard his fall, the landing in the water.
Benjamin Schmitz was expecting the worst at that moment on Monday morning: that Sammy, his magnificent three-year-old Bernese Mountain Dog, a real family member, would not be able to survive the trip to the moss.
“I thought: he's dead.” Schmitz, restaurateur in Murnau (Zum Murnauer, Höllgasse) felt fear, sheer panic, helplessness.
And he blamed himself: why hadn't he leashed Sammy?
The day after, Schmitz seems just happy and relaxed: Sammy is fine, he survived this spectacular accident at the lake of the Lange Köchel in the Murnauer Moos with minor injuries: with a sprained paw, open spots on the snout and a few bruises.
"Sammy had a million guardian angels," says Schmitz.
Or: professional, human rescuers from the Murnau fire brigade who knew what to do.
And who even did a little more so that the man and dog could cope with the shock experience.
Murnauer Moos: Sammy the dog falls almost vertically into the depths - and lands in the water
Schmitz and his partner had gone for a walk with the dog when the 54 kilo animal fell on the Langen Köchel, where the Werdenfels hard stone works had once extracted glaucous quartzite - around 30 meters below the surface: “The dog fell almost vertically down a rocky wall “, Says Murnau's fire brigade commander Florian Krammer.
"He was very lucky." Sammy landed in the artificial lake, the flooded open pit of the former quarry.
Schmitz forced himself to look down - his eyes found the Bernese Mountain Dog paddling helplessly in the water.
The restaurateur was looking for a job with cell phone reception, got help - without knowing at that moment whether Sammy was still alive.
But he moved towards the bank and made it onto a ledge.
Rescue came in the form of the Murnau fire brigade: Krammer waited above the animal so that two of his men could find the right place in a rescue boat.
Sammy growled after the shock, but the soldiers “were able to convince him to get in.
He sat very well in the boat, ”says Krammer - and adds with a wink:“ Men and dog were on the same wavelength in the boat. ”And that wasn't enough help: the volunteers then brought the master and Sammy into one in the defense vehicle Garmisch-Partenkirchen practice, in which an informed veterinarian was waiting.
Rescued dog: Master is infinitely grateful to the emergency services and promises a big Sammy party
Schmitz experienced highly emotional moments: the helpless Sammy struggling for his life, whom he could not help, the arrival of the rescuers, the happy ending.
“I haven't cried like that in 38 years.” Schmitz also said “A thousand thanks” to the armed forces via social media - and received a lot of heartfelt reactions.
After all, Sammy can often be seen in the restaurant and is therefore known as a sore thumb.
At Schmitz, the Murnau fire brigade has not just had a stone in the board since Monday: “I have always liked it because I find the voluntary commitment so incredible.” He promises the emergency services for the time after the partial lockdown (“If we allowed ”) a“ really fat Sammy party.
I won't forget that ”.
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List of rubric lists: © Dominik Bartl