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A group on Tuesday searches for Amanda Richmond, a 45-year-old Eagle River resident, who has been missing since Saturday afternoon, when she was swept under the ice of the North Fork of Eagle River. (Loren Holmes / ADN)
Search efforts continued Tuesday for a woman who disappeared after jumping into the North Fork of Eagle River to try to save her family’s dog after it fell through the ice.
Family of 45-year-old Eagle River resident Amanda Richmond Rogers, who also went by Mandy, described her as an animal lover and as a devoted mother.
She was walking with her husband, Brian Rogers, and two of their dogs along the North Fork Eagle River trail on Saturday afternoon when one of the dogs fell through the ice while trying to drink water from a small opening, Brian Rogers wrote in a statement. He went into the water first to try to save the dog but couldn’t find it, he said.
As he got out of the water, Rogers said, he saw his wife getting in.
“I knew from the look on her face she was going in to save our dog,” Rogers wrote. “She is an emergency room nurse, trained to help and save people. In this situation, she was going to save our dog. I yelled but doubt she even heard me as she was completely concentrating on saving the dog. Before I could get back to the opening to try and grab her I could see her SWIMMING downstream under the ice and then out of sight. I waited and waited and am still waiting.”
Amanda Richmond Rogers snuggles with her dog Groot. Richmond Rogers and Groot are both still missing after being swept under ice on the North Fork of Eagle River on Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Jennifer Richmond)
Rogers said they went in after the dog because their instincts kicked in — Richmond Rogers loved her dogs fiercely and considered them to be part of her family.
“She did not jump in to save ‘just a dog,’ it was a family member,” Rogers wrote. “To me and our four boys she died a hero.”
Anchorage police and firefighters responded on Saturday, and the Department of Public Safety used a helicopter to search by air, troopers said. A wildlife trooper also helped with the ground search.
Search efforts paused as daylight faded. The Alaska Dive Search, Rescue, and Recovery Team began searching under the ice on Sunday morning. Responders did not locate Richmond.
Tuesday’s search was set to continue during daylight hours, troopers said. Groups involved include the dive search team, Alaska Solstice Search Dogs, and troopers.
Searchers work Sunday in the area where a woman was swept under the ice of the North Fork of Eagle River a day earlier. (Photo provided by Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team)
Richmond Rogers’ family has been devastated by her disappearance, her sister Jennifer Richmond said.
Richmond Rogers was celebrating her 18th wedding anniversary with her husband on Saturday when she went missing, Brian Rogers said. They’d planned a special day together to celebrate and were looking forward to celebrating Christmas with their four boys and visiting family members, he said.
The couple met while both working in the medical field in Texas and moved to Alaska for Rogers’ work in the Air Force, Jennifer Richmond said. They fell in love with Alaska and made it their forever home, Richmond said.
Amanda Richmond is surrounded by her family. From left are Liam Rogers, 16, Leif Thurmond, 25, Amanda Richmond, 45, August Rogers, 15, Brian Rogers, 49, and Bodhi Rogers, 10. (Photo courtesy of Jennifer Richmond)
Richmond Rogers was an animal lover who was passionate about rescuing dogs, according to her sister. The family had four dogs, including the Irish wolfhound that also went missing Saturday and has not been found, she said.
Richmond Rogers will be remembered for her kindness, her sister said. She was a loving mother and “her sons were everything to her,” Richmond said.
Tess Williams is a reporter focusing on breaking news and public safety. Before joining the ADN in 2019, she was a reporter for the Grand Forks Herald in North Dakota. Contact her at twilliams@adn.com.
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