78-year-old man dies after rescue from lake by bystanders
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Fire Department is commending a group of bystanders for their “heroic actions” after they pulled an unconscious 78-year-old man from a lake Monday afternoon.
The man died sometime after the rescue, IFD announced Tuesday afternoon. He was identified as 78-year-old Frank Miller. The department shared its condolences with Miller’s friends and family Tuesday.
Around 4:45 p.m. Monday, the IFD Dive Rescue Team was dispatched to multiple reports of an unconscious man in the water off the 8200 block of Clearwater Pointe. That is in a gated community on the northeast side of Indianapolis, off East 82nd Street.
Firefighters arrived to learn that the man had been pulled from the water by Kimberly Bogle, the fiance of motorsports racer and 2016 Indy 500 driver Matthew Brabham.
Brabham’s parents, Geoff and Roseina, as well as Jerry Roehling, a UPS driver in the neighborhood, assisted in the rescue. Geoff Brabham is also a former racer, making 10 appearances in the Indy 500 in the 1980s and 1990s.
Bogle told investigators that she and her friend Riley Quillen were boating when they noticed an empty boat in the middle of the lake.
Near the empty boat was a seat-like floating device with no occupant. The two inspected the boat and found Miller unconscious and under the water.
Bogle jumped from the boat with a pool noodle and pulled the man to a floating dock 100 yards away. Bogle also told Quillen to drive the boat to Geoff and Roseina’s nearby home and call 911.
By the time Bogle reached the dock with Miller, Quillen returned with Geoff and Roseina. They were also assisted by Roehling, who ran out of the house where he’d been delivering a package.
The group pulled Miller out of the water and performed lifesaving measures on the man until emergency services arrived. Medics were able to stabilize the man by 5:26 p.m.
The man was taken to a Community Heart and Vascular Hospital for treatment.
Investigators say it is still unclear how long Miller was underwater.
This story has been updated with information on Miller’s passing.