The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office received a call Tuesday morning that two men had washed off a low-water slab on County Road 108 in the Prairie Hollow area north of Ava.
Emergency personnel responded to the area and executed a successful rescue operation.
The two men were identified as James Brooke, age 53, and Jeffery Brooke, 22, both of Mansfield.
The Dodge Durango the men were riding in had washed off the night before and the two men made it to shore safely.
James Brooke sustained injuries to his knee that rendered him incapable of walking out, so both men slept in the woods over night as the storms continued to blow through the area.
On Tuesday morning, Jeffery Brooke walked to a residence on Old 5 Highway and contacted the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office at about 10 a.m. First responders from Ava Rural Fire Department and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area. While en route, Sheriff Chris Degase came across Tim Shortt with the Missouri Department of Conservation on CR 108 and he indicated he knew the area well. Shortt also responded to the area.
James Brooke was located approximately one-half to three-fourths of a mile from CR 108 and was unable to walk. He was carried out of the woods by personnel with Ava Rural Fire Dept., Sheriff Degase and some neighbors who had walked up to assist.
With all the traffic on the County Road, the road began to give way and subsequently almost every vehicle became stuck. Shortt contacted Missouri Conservation employee Don Hanger who brought a bulldozer to the location and pulled the truck carrying the victim through the areas of the road that had collapsed, in order to get the victim to the ambulance which was waiting on Old Highway 5.
Numerous First Responder vehicles and the sheriff’s vehicle had to be pulled though the areas of the road that had given away. Also, Shortt and Hanger cut and cleared the road to allow the emergency responders to get out. This rescue was concluded at approximately 4 p.m. Tuesday as the last emergency responders arrived to hard ground on Old Highway 5.
Sheriff Degase said it would have been impossible for the emergency responders to get out of the area without the bulldozer and the assistance given by Shortt and Hanger.
Douglas County Deputies were involved in another water rescue on Friday, April 22, in the Twin Bridges area. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Missouri State Water Patrol with the rescue.
