New Details On Boy, 11, Who Fell Through Ice In West Long Branch

WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ — An 11-year-old boy fell through an icy pond Monday afternoon in West Long Branch.

The child's life was saved by West Long Branch Patrolman Dave Brosonski, who was the first to arrive on the scene and immediately entered the water without any rescue gear or protective equipment on, wearing only his thin blue police uniform.

At 2:41 p.m., police received a call reporting a child fell through the ice at Franklin Lake, the department said in this Facebook post. This is a small lake located right next to Shore Regional High School.

The boy was alone, walking home from school, and he may have been trying to take a shortcut across the frozen pond, said West Long Branch Police Lt. Brian Burton.

"The lake has been frozen over for the past several weeks. People have been out there ice skating on it, playing hockey," he said. "But today was of course much warmer. The temperature was in the 50s. There's still a thin layer of ice on it, though."

The boy was alone when he fell in. He was in the water for several minutes before a passerby saw him and called 911.

"Parts of that lake are seven feet deep," said Burton. "Where he was we estimate was four to six feet deep. The water was about up to the boy's shoulders."

Brosonki, in his 50s and a 17-year veteran of the West Long Branch Police Dept., was the first officer to arrive on scene. He just happens to be a water rescue instructor for the Monmouth County Police Academy, where he trains new police recruits in how to do water and ice rescues.

"Without hesitation" Brosonski jumped in.

"Honestly, if you see his body camera footage, he gets to the lake, jumps out of his car, throws his vest and gun belt to the ground and just jumps into the water," said Burton. "He did not even hesitate."

Brosonski did put a rope around his shoulders and two other officers on land, Patrolman Angelo Marone and Sgt. Ryan Buck, held the rope, along with volunteer firefighters, to pull him back in with the boy.

As the two were pulled to land, the boy was crying and was "very, very cold," said Burton. "He was really scared."

The boy was taken to a local hospital for evaluation as a precaution, but otherwise appeared in good health.

Children, teens have died falling through New Jersey frozen ponds before

Not all children in New Jersey have been so lucky: The end of winter is a prime time for children, teens and even dogs to fall through ice, with sometimes tragic consequences.

On Jan. 22, 2020, 15-year-old David Tillberg died after he and a friend fell into the partially frozen Carteret Pond around 5 p.m. in Carteret. His friend was able to get out, but Tillberg was not. First responders from all over Middlesex County descended on Carteret Park and it took rescue workers nearly an hour to pull him from the water. He was rushed to University Hospital in Newark and died there Thursday morning.

"They couldn't find him for at least an hour, maybe 45 minutes," his aunt said in this interview with Patch. "After they finally did find him, they worked on him for eight-plus hours. I mean, they really tried. They did everything they could."

Hauntingly, Tillberg made one final entry to his SnapChat account just moments before the ice broke underneath him: He is pictured in the dark, with the caption "On the ice baby."

Incredibly, that same night in East Brunswick, around that same time, three teenage boys fell into the pond located behind police headquarters. Two of the boys made it out, but the third, 13-year-old Yousef Khela, an eighth-grader at Churchill Junior High School, did not survive.

At 4:55 p.m., police were called to the pond for a call of three juveniles who fell through the ice. When police got there, two of the boys were able to successfully pull themselves out, but one boy still remained in the water. Arriving officers immediately formed a chain and entered the pond, but he slipped under the ice before they could reach him.

East Brunswick firefighters arrived and, working with police, were able recover the 13-year-old boy from the pond. He was given CPR and rushed in critical condition to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:45 p.m., said police.

Six officers and two firefighters were treated for hypothermia in their attempt to rescue the boy. Additionally, East Brunswick police were racing so fast to the pond that one officer got into a car accident and had to be hospitalized.

Prior: 2 Teenage Boys Die After Falling Through Ice In New Jersey (Jan. 2020)

East Brunswick Sued Over Death Of Teen Who Fell Through Ice (2022)

Dog Dies After Falling Through Ice In Middletown (Jan. 2018)

Dog Falls Into Icy Milltown Pond, Saved by Officer and DPW Manager (Jan. 2016)