Video: Rescue of boy sledding on thin ice seen by over 1.3 million

A video of emergency services in Rosmalen rescuing a boy who got stuck after sledding on too thin ice was posted on Facebook ans watched over 1.3 million times in less than three days.

The video shows the boy and his sled standing on the edge of very thin ice. Police and firefighters arrive and as dozens of bystanders watch, a firefighter breaks through the thin ice and gets into the freezing water. He slowly makes his way to the boy with a small rubber raft and convinces the boy to get onto the raft. As police officers drag the boy to the safety of the shore, the firefighter goes further into the icy water to also rescue the boys sled.

The video was posted on Facebook by 72-year-old Bert van Dalen. "I saw the little man stuck on the cie and the fire department arriving", Van Dalen said to Omroep Brabant. "I decided to film it and put it on Facebook. I did that to sow that the emergency services do a lot of good work. For they are frequently criticized."

The 72-year-old Rosmalen man never expected that the video - the first one he's ever posted on Facebook - would become something of an internet sensation, and himself something of a celebrity. "Oh all the attention. I don't need it. I never intended this", he said to the broadcaster, adding with a laugh: "But actually it is quite nice."