Sheriff’s office: 33-year-old woman drowns while presumably trying to save dog

LAPEER CO., Mich. (WNEM) – A woman in Lapeer County drowned after she likely went out to rescue her dog who had fallen through the ice, the sheriff’s office said.

The Lapeer County Sheriff’s Office said on Dec. 11 at about 5:30 p.m., deputies were dispatched to an address on Armstrong Road in Goodland Township for a possible drowning.

When they arrived, deputies saw a pond that was mostly iced over with an area of open water in the center, the sheriff’s office said, adding the family dog, who appeared to be dead, was seen floating in the water.

The sheriff’s office said members of several fire departments used a paddle boat to get out to the area of open water, breaking the 1-inch-thick ice along the way.

The body of the homeowner, a 33-year-old woman, was recovered from the water, the sheriff’s office said. Investigators presume she had gone onto the ice to try and save her dog from the water.

She was taken to McLaren Lapeer Hospital where life-saving efforts took place, but she was pronounced dead shortly before 8 p.m., the sheriff’s office said.

The incident is under investigation.

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