The body of a woman who fell through the ice at a New Hampshire pond was recovered Sunday during a second day of searching for the Atkinson resident.
New Hampshire State Police first announced Saturday night they were conducting a search of Big Island Pond in Atkinson for a woman who was believed to have fallen through the ice and likely drowned around 5:30 p.m.
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State police confirmed around 10 a.m. Sunday that divers from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department had recovered the the body of 56-year-old Emer Mezzetti from the pond in the area of Osprey Road in Hampstead.
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Officials say Mezzetti was walking the lake on Chase Island Road near her Atkinson home when she fell through thin ice about 30 yards off the shoreline and yelled for help.
Her pleas drew first responders from various communities to Chase Island Road. While they spent hours searching for her in the icy pond Saturday night, they were ultimately unsuccessful in their rescue efforts.
It took just 15 minutes for the Fish and Game dive team to find Mezzetti's body Sunday morning.
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Her daughter tells NBC10 Boston that Mezzetti was "a beautiful and vivacious woman who loved her children...and her four grandchildren more than anything."
"She was a proud Irish immigrant, born in Dublin and raised in Newton, Massachusetts with her four siblings,” Shannon McNeil said of her mom, who would do anything for her family. "Every single person who knew her light, loved her, and she brought life into every room she walked through. This world was lucky to have her light, ambition, and adventurous spirit, and we are absolutely broken over the loss of her."
According to Lt. Adam Cheney, Mezzetti was walking over hidden springs that can act as a bubbler, weakening the ice.
"I wouldn’t be out on that ice on that pond," Cheney said. "I know our airboat went out on that pond and the ice was never able to support our air boat.”
People were back on the lake ice fishing again Sunday, though.
Ice fisher Sean Michaud says he follows all safety tips from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, constantly checking for six inches of ice and carrying flotation gear at all times.
“When there’s snow like this, and if you’re not prepared or checking, it looks like solid ice,” Michaud said. "We carry picks like this so that if you go in you can rescue yourself.”
Even Michaud says he has fallen through before.
“You hit that water, it just sucks the life out of you. You can’t breathe, you can’t catch your breath, and if you’re not prepared or ready, it can be seconds before something tragic happens,” Michaud said.
State police have urged people to be careful with frozen bodies of water, reminding everyone that all ice is potentially dangerous and that you should never go out alone. There should be a minimum of six inches of hard ice before someone sets foot onto it. And even if it's thick, that doesn't necessarily mean it's strong.
First responders from five communities tried to save Mezzetti, and her family tells NBC10 Boston that they are absolutely heartbroken by the tragic loss of their loving matriarch.
Anyone with additional information that may assist the ongoing investigation is asked to contact Marine Patrol Sgt. Nicholas Haroutunian at 603-227-2112 or Nicholas.M.Haroutunian@DOS.NH.GOV.