Man saves woman from Boise River near diversion dam, honored by Idaho Red Cross
BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — The Idaho Red Cross honored a man Wednesday for saving a woman near a diversion dam in the Boise River.
Darrin Hansen was sitting on the north shore of the Boise River near the 9th Street bridge when he heard cries for help.
A woman was clinging to a branch and in fast-moving water. She apparently had fallen from her raft and wouldn't let go of the branch.
Hansen jumped into the chest-deep, fast-moving water and swam to her. The woman still would not let go of the branch, but Hansen calmly reassured he would get her to safety.
The woman then clang to him and he swam to the shore where medical personnel were waiting.
According to officials, if she had lost her grip, she would have been swept downstream into a diversion dam waterfall and the situation would have turned out much differently.
The American Red Cross Lifesaving Awards goes all the way back to 1911. Since the program was reintroduced in 2018, the American Red Cross handed out more than 900 of these awards across the country. Together these winners have saved 411 lives.
