Scott Evans-KTVB

Parkcenter Pond in Boise, where the accident occurred.

BOISE -- Boise firefighters were out for a training exercise Wednesday afternoon that turned into a real rescue for one of their own.

The Boise Fire Department isn't quite sure how this near drowning happened.

Firefighters were out at the Parkcenter Pond - training for ice rescues. It is something they do every year. But what happened is the worst training accident they've seen in years.

Divers were taking turns going into the water that was topped with a thick layer of ice.

Each diver wore a dry suit and had an apparatus to breathe under the water.

While one person was training, a rescue diver noticed something was wrong, and the training exercise quickly turned into the real thing.

"Our business is always risky in every training that we do because we train to go in fires, and if you can imagine going under the ice, it is a dangerous profession that we have, but we also provide as much safety factor as possible," said Deputy Fire Chief Dave Hanneman.

KTVB file

Earl Swope appears in this file photo.

The rescue diver pulled his colleague from the water and began to resuscitate him. The hospitalized diver is identified as Earl Swope.

By the time the ambulance arrived, the man was breathing and talking.

Swope was then transported to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, where he was treated and released.

Swope has been with the fire department for 12 years and is an experienced dive team instructor.