Morris County first responders came together to rescue an 82-year-old man from the freezing waters at Lake Hopatcong in Mount Arlington.

Teams jumped into action on Wednesday after a report came in about a man who needed to be rescued from the water.

They say the man was ice-boating when he hit the water. Although most of the lake is covered by a thick ice shelf, there are open spots.

"We told him to please lay down flat because we didn't know what other ice around him would be comprised and he might fall in again," said Chief Mario Marcano.

Within four minutes, firefighters were on scene, geared up, and moving fast.

"We got straight into the water and swam up to the shelf, then we kicked ourselves up on the shelf and were on the move," said Firefighter Adrian Vargas.

The firefighters used ice picks and dragged themselves slowly toward the man. Meanwhile, the man found a way up to the ice.

When the firefighters reached the victim, he was showing signs of hypothermia.

They needed to get him back quickly. Luckily, other departments were preparing just for this sort of emergency close by, doing ice rescue training.

"It was a phenomenal rescue, you couldn't ask, between all the partners who were there, and everyone worked so seamlessly," said firefighter Arthur Scofield.

The chief said the victim is doing well and back home.

"We got him home, he's home safe, that's the most important part," said Vargas.

"Our firefighters responded very quickly, very fast, and were able to save him," said Assistant Chief Wesley Martin.

For the first responders, it's what they work and train for.

"Low frequency, high-risk calls that you don't see often but that's what you train for," said Scofield.

The chief told me they haven't seen many ice incidents this year, but they continue to train for events just like this.

They encourage people to be safe and check how thick the ice is before going out.