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by ERIC GREENBERG
Firefighters rescued an emotionally disturbed man from Wolfe's Pond Park yesterday afternoon after he waded into a pond.
The incident occurred at 1:27 p.m. near the intersection of Wilbur Street and Holton Avenue when the distraught man, identified only as Julio Pagan, apparently ditched his blue knapsack near a tree and waded about 50 feet into the greenish waters, according to Division 8 Deputy Fire Chief James Leonard.
Among the first to arrive at the park were Fire Lt. Robert Bolker and Michael Banovich of Ladder Co. 84 in Huguenot, who went into the pond to rescue the man.
"He looked like he was drowning and seemed distraught," Bolker said. "His legs were very weak and he couldn't stand."
Banovich said the man, whom authorities believe is in his mid-30s, was in no immediate danger following the incident.
Banovich said Pagan mumbled something about children in the water, which prompted firefighters to search the pond with two boats for about a half-hour after the rescue before concluding there was no one else there.
Authorities said Pagan carried identification indicating he was enrolled in a methadone treatment program in Brooklyn.
They could not confirm his place of residence.
Police said he was taken Staten Island University Hospital, Prince's Bay, for observation. A hospital source said he was released several hours later.
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