WATERLOO, Iowa (KWWL) – A young deer escaped certain death Saturday when an Iowa man jumped into the flooded Cedar River to pull the animal to safety.

People were standing near Waterloo’s 4th Street Bridge Saturday taking pictures of the flooded Cedar River when the deer jumped in the river.

It swam a few hundred feet while trying to beat the current, and it eventually became stranded near the base of the bridge.

“My daughter called 911, and another lady called the police department, and the police department said they couldn’t do anything. They said she is just going to have to swim to shore,” witness Trazon Walker said.

Once they pulled it to safety, Waterloo Police arrived along with Animal Control.

The men decided to take the deer out of town and then release it to the wild.

The Evansdale man who jumped in the water did not want to be named or interviewed, but he was praised for saving the deer’s life by everyone in the area.