A major tragedy was prevented on Friday afternoon at the Kamberovica polje site in Zenica after police officer Ermin Mujezinovic rescued a three-year-old boy from a cold Bosna river who began drowning.
Ermin Mujezinovic is a police officer at the Crkvice Police Station, and he has been a member of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of the Zenica-Doboj Canton (ZDC) for a little less than four years. He is a certified CMAS diver with one star and has certain knowledge and skills for navigating in water and underwater.
It was these skills that were crucial on Friday when he was sent to the Kamberovica polje site, where the missing child was reported, while he was performing regular duties and tasks with a colleague.
“Upon arrival, we spotted a woman and a child running towards the Bosna riverbed. I didn’t immediately think the boy could enter the river as it was icy and flooded because it had been raining and snowing the previous day. Despite that, the little boy entered the icy river and tried to walk thinking he could cross to the other side. After moving 3-5 meters away from the shore, the boy was knocked down by the water and turned on his stomach, after which he started drowning, ” Mujezinovic told.
He stressed that he was in shock, but that he knew how to act given that the boy was farther from the shore each second.
“The currents of the river were really strong and I knew that with further thinking they would carry the boy away from the shore by each second, and thus the rescue, which was already difficult, would become almost impossible. I jumped into the river without any hesitation and started walking as fast as possible from the shore, counting on the currents to bring him towards me or at least close to me “, added Mujezinovic.
Although he barely stayed on his feet due to the water current, a hole in the riverbed of Bosna and slippery stones, he still managed to grab the boy by the jacket in the back area and lift him out of the water.
“When I picked him up, he was just screaming and crying inconsolably. As you could see in the video, that’s how I took him out of the water and I think I handed him over to a colleague who was on the shore. Believe me, at no point, did I I was hesitant since I am a parent of another little boy and I just put myself in the situation that it was my child, ” said a police officer from Zenica.
After coming out of the water, he was unaware for a while that he had actually saved a young life that could have been ended due to someone’s negligence, and citizens who were nearby approached the scene in an attempt to calm the boy. It was then that they realized he was deaf, so he could not tell who his parents were and who should be contacted.
“Since I was in the state of shock and unconsciousness of my act, I called the duty officer and told him that we had saved the child, that I should go home to change and continue with regular works and tasks to which everyone categorically said ‘No, go home, warm up and drink tea, ” concluded Mujezinovic after a tragic event with a happy ending.
This event was followed by numerous congratulations from the citizens for the courage and determination, but also the professionalism of the police officer. Semir Sut, the Police Commissioner of the MIA ZDC also congratulated Mujezinovic on his act, Klix.ba writes.
