Seems to me you learn when contemplating the extremes, maybe even the most unlikely, implausible circumstances. That is when your experience and creativity get the most complete workout.

It is very hard for me to imagine no one has faced this scenario in the real world, but puzzles do not have to be "verifiably realistic" to consider their solution.

I do not mind if folks decline to get on the hook, or, having tried it on for size, decide to wiggle off. I do not mind justifications for declining or wiggling off - each to their own.

As I thought through this scenario, which popped into my mind while watching flood waters at a local park, solutions were not immediately apparent to me. So of course I decided to share it with the ETS brain trust.

My thought / hope was that there were some swift water rescue folks that could share an idea or two that might come in handy someday.