In July 2018, Al Trovinger, his wife, and their three-year-old dog River were driving on the Jubilee Parkway Bridge near Mobile, Alabama. Suddenly, traffic came to a complete standstill, and Trovinger saw there was a huge accident up ahead. After thirty minutes, traffic still hadn’t started moving. River began to get anxious—she desperately needed a potty break.
Trovinger put River on her leash and took her to the side of the bridge. And that’s when disaster struck.
When Trovinger and River reached the side of the bridge, River got overexcited. She leaped towards the concrete barrier on the side of the bridge.
Unfortunately, River’s leash broke at just the wrong moment. River fell off the side of the bridge and into the water far below.
Trovinger and his wife stared down at Mobile Bay, helplessly watching their dog struggling to swim. The shore wasn’t far away, but River was too scared to swim towards it. When the other people stuck in traffic saw what was happening, they also got out of their cars. Everyone wanted to help River, but no one was sure how.
After ten minutes of watching River struggle, Trovinger knew what he had to do. He took a deep breath and leaped off the side of the bridge.
“There was nothing else we could do. She was either going to drown or someone was going to jump off and get her, so I jumped off,” Trovinger told FOX 10.
As soon as Trovinger hit the water, River swam over to him—she was so happy to see him. River tried to climb on top of Trovinger, which made it difficult for both of them to swim. Then, one of the good Samaritans watching from the bridge threw down a dog lifejacket. It was too small for River, but Trovinger was able to use it for buoyancy.
With her dad by her side, River was able to relax a bit. The two headed towards a nearby boat launch, swimming as fast as they could.
“For the first couple minutes it was tough, but once I kind of got the right stroke and she was getting a little calmer, it was fine,” Trovinger said.
When Trovinger and River reached the boat launch, they were greeted by paramedics who checked them out. Thankfully, they were both okay!
Once both Trovinger and River were given a clean bill of health, the exhausted pair headed home, where we’re sure they took a well-deserved nap.
After the incident, a reporter asked Trovinger if he would do it all again. Trovinger didn’t hesitate—he quickly said yes. He would do anything to help his best buddy.
“She’s a good girl. I love her,” he said.
Trovinger is a brave man who took an incredible risk to help his scared dog. If you’d like to learn more about Trovinger and River, check out the video below.
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