An attempt to rescue a dog from a pond ended tragically for a Dewar teenager Thursday afternoon.
iceThe 17-year-old teen was found underwater after a nearly two-hour rescue attempt by Dewar and Henryetta police and fire departments and county emergency management personnel.
According to the Okmulgee County sheriff’s department, a dog was found stranded on the ice-covered pond by the victim’s mother. Several articles of clothing were also found at the scene.
Both Dewar and Henryetta fire departments are trained in water rescue. An inflatable boat carried two emergency personnel out into the lake trying to locate the girl.
“Tragically this shows the danger of getting onto ponds and lakes,” said Henryetta fire chief David Bullard. “Even though we have been nearly two weeks with below freezing temperatures, the ice is not thick enough to support a person.” The ice at the scene of the tragedy was about two inches thick.
He was shown a photo taken at Nichols Park earlier in the day that clearly shows human tracks on the ice around the footprintsfishing dock. “I saw that and was talking with our people about how dangerous that kind of activity is,” Bullard said.
Word of the tragedy¥ spread quickly throughout Dewar prompting school officials to cancel classes and provide counseling services at the school Friday.