Boy missing in fall through Red River ice

A six-year-oldboy is missing afterhe andhis olderbrotherfell through the ice while playing hockey on the Red River in Winnipeg on Saturday, prompting anemergency rescue effort.

Police and firefighters were still searching for the boy, concentrating on covering an area that extends about three city blocks downstream from the Disraeli Bridge in the city's North Point Douglas area, Const. Natalie Aitken of Winnipeg Police Services said.

She saidcrewswere using inflatable boats on the river, which is ice-covered but has some open patches.

Shortly after the boys fell through the ice, Kole Devisscher, 16, who was driving by, spotted the10-year-old brother struggling in the water. He grabbed a tow rope out of the back of his truck and headed out on the ice, risking his life.

"I kind of thought about it before I went out there and did what I could to get him out," Devisscher said.

The boy's hands were too cold to grip the rope,soDevisscher made a lasso and hooked him in.

Eyewitnesses estimated the boy was in the water about 15 minutes. They saidhe was so cold, his legs were barely working and that he kept tripping as he tried to walk.

"He was just screaming and saying he was freezing and his brother was dead. It's pretty sad," Devisscher said.

As hewas taken to hospital, emergency crewsdeployed rescue boats to beginsearching for theyounger boy.

There was no immediate word on the condition of the rescued boy.

"What started out as a fun event on a relatively nice winter day has really turned into a tragedy," said Aiken.