On Wednesday, August 20th just before 1 pm, Indiana State Police Troopers William Brown and Sergeant Doug Hutchinson were conducting routine patrol in Owen County. The Owen County Sheriff’s Department had just dispatched that a man (later identified as Michael Voskoboynik, 49 years old, a foreign national visiting the area) was stuck in the White River near Gosport and County Line Road. Trooper Brown and Sgt. Hutchinson responded to the area and took a path along the river to locate the stranded person.
Less than a mile from the roadway, Troopers located a large group of adults and children observing a man holding onto tree debris in the river. The man had a life vest on, however it was not secured. An approaching storm and cooler temperatures concerned Troopers about the male’s ability to hold on to the debris. Trooper Brown and Sgt Hutchinson then removed their uniform shirts, vests and duty belts and entered the water in an available kayak, crossing the river slightly upstream, as to better position themselves to help the stranded male. Off duty Owen County Deputy Kevin Wampler then arrived on the shore closest to the trapped male.
Troopers coordinated with Deputy Wampler, who was able to throw a flotation device attached to a rope to the man. After securing it around his body, Deputy Wampler was able to pull the man away from the tree debris so the moving current would carry him to where Trooper Brown and Sgt. Hutchinson were located. As the man approached the Trooper’s location, the current began taking him away and the rope slid up and around his neck. The rope then caught on more debris along the river. A language barrier made it very difficult for Trooper Brown and Sgt. Hutchinson to give instruction to the man and as the man tried, he was fighting the current, which made it even more difficult for him to move any closer to the Troopers.
Sgt Hutchinson was then able to lay on the river bank, which was approximately 2 feet above the water level, in an attempt to reach out and grab the man’s hand. Trooper Brown then hung on to Sgt Hutchinson to prevent him from getting pulled in or falling into the river. Finally, the man was able to lunge toward Sgt Hutchinson and once Hutchinson had a firm grasp on him, he was able to move the rope down from around his neck. The Troopers then pulled him up to safety. Brown and Hutchinson then walked the man up the steep river bank to Deputy Wampler’s pickup truck where he was attended to by First Responders and EMS Officials.
Trooper Brown and Sgt. Hutchinson then kayaked back across the river where they, along with Deputy Phil White assisted the group in pulling several kayaks from the river to an open field where the group’s owners could return them.
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Photo 1 - Trooper William Brown
Photo 2 - Sergeant Doug Hutchinson
Photo 3 - Hutchinson & Brown after the completed rescue
