“She died a Hero!”
These were the words that Amanda Richmond’s husband told KTUU when addressing the news company in a statement. Amanda, a mother of four, went under the ice of the frozen Eagle River while trying to save her beloved dog. The incident happened about 12 miles northeast of downtown Anchorage while she was with her husband and dogs.
According to reports, one of their dogs went into an open water area and drank some water when it fell deep into it. In a heroic act, Amanda dived in after the dog to save it from dying. Brian Rogers, her husband, also went into the water to keep both of them alive.
Rogers survived and came out of the water uninjured, but Amanda was not so lucky. Both she and the dog disappeared immediately afterward. Emergency troopers tried to save both of them but to no avail.
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As the weather worsened, the troopers had no choice but to postpone the search for a while. Not long after, they pronounced them dead, as they could not have survived for that long underwater.
When the weather improved, the team in Alaska resumed their search for Amanda and her dog to recover their bodies. NBC News contacted the family for a statement but wasn’t immediately successful. Some days later, her sister, Jennifer, provided a statement from Amanda’s husband, who could not talk to the press.
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In the statement, Rogers spoke about his wife’s bravery and the sad loss of their dog, Groot. “She did not jump in to save ‘just a dog,’ it was a family member,” he said. He also went on to address people who found it difficult to understand why both of them tried to save the dog.
“To anyone wondering why we would jump in to save our dog, I can only answer: our instincts took over, and we went in without thought. Amanda loved her dogs nearly as much as our kids. They were our family,” Rogers said in the statement.
According to her husband, Amanda “died a hero,” and his only regret is he couldn’t get to her till it was too late. She was a nurse, and her first instinct has always been to help needy people. “She has touched so many people’s lives for the better,” Rogers said in the statement to KTUU.
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Sadly, even as the troopers resumed their search for the bodies, all efforts have proven futile. Therefore, towards the end of the year, the authorities called off an “active search” for Amanda and Groot.
As weather conditions improve, they may resume their search, but it is unclear if that will happen. Therefore, Rogers and Amanda’s family are still mourning her loss and are hoping for the best.
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