Indian-American couple’s children drown in frozen lake with officials

Washington:

The two minor daughters of an Indian-American couple, who drowned after falling through the ice while walking on a frozen lake, are in the custody of the Department of Child Protection in the US state of Arizona.

A day after Christmas, Narayan Muddana, 49, and his wife, Harita Muddana, and their friend Gokul Medisetty, 47, drowned in Woods Canyon Lake in Coconino County in the US state of Arizona.

While walking on a frozen lake to take some photographs, he fell through the ice.

ABC15.com reported that by the time anyone found cell service on the hill and first responders arrived with their limited cold water rescue resources, it was too late.

Rescuers pulled Haritha out of the water, but she was pronounced dead. The next day both the youths met.

The Arizona Department of Child Safety was called on Monday to come to Forest Lakes and take custody of the orphaned girls, ages 7 and 12.

“You never get used to it. Especially when you’re dealing with kids,” said John Paxton of the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO).

“We wanted to make sure they felt as safe as possible. We tried to keep them as warm as possible and away from the scene,” he said.

On 26 December, three families – consisting of six adults and five children – set out from the valley to enjoy the snowy road.

“(They) wanted to take some pictures on the ice,” Paxton said.

While taking photographs on the ice, three men fell into minus 30-degree water.

“Personnel stationed at a substation in the area were called to the lake after two men and a woman walked on the frozen lake and fell through the ice,” according to a statement released by officials with the CCSO. Meanwhile, the community is mourning and coming together to support two families torn apart by an expected tragedy, the report said.

“He’s a very fun-loving, loving guy. He’s very kind at heart. He loved his kids”, said Kishore Pitla, Narayan’s next-door neighbor and close friend.

He told ABC15 that a few days ago the Muddanna family invited his family to Woods Canyon Lake.

“Sunday night he sent me the link. ‘Hey, we’re headed to this place. Do you want to join?’ I said, ‘No, I was already tired.’ The report added that two other families also joined in the issues celebrating Haritha’s birthday.

“A total of 11 people went there and as you know, two families were affected,” said Venkat Komineni, president of the Arizona Telugu Association.

The parents, Narayana Rao and Haritha, fall into the icy water along with their friend Gokul, who has left behind a wife and a daughter.

“I was in shock,” said the teen. “I don’t understand, did it really happen for a moment?” Venkat told ABC15 that he was surprised by how many people have made an effort to directly help the girls.

“I think five people reached out to me saying, ‘Are these kids up for adoption? We would like to take care of their lives.’

“The money is going in the name of the children – for their education, for their future, for whatever they want to do in life,” Venkat said.

Woods Canyon is located in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, east of Lake Payson. This is a popular area among hikers, anglers, and other outdoor enthusiasts.

More than a million Americans and Canadians are facing problems as a massive winter storm continues to hit North America.

A bomb cyclone, when atmospheric pressure decreases, has brought snow, strong winds and freezing temperatures. About 250 million are affected, and at least 19 deaths have been linked to the storm which stretched more than 3,200 km from Quebec to Texas.