SUV in the Lake Update

Hey, Sam, Merci & Buddy here with an update on yesterday's post on the SUV in the lake. If you missed it, you can read it here.

When we were down that way at 8 pm last night, there was still a crowd of police and rescue workers. A boat was slowly going back and forth in the area where the SUV was found. They had used a grappling hook, sonar and cadaver dogs and trained crews and equipment from another county.

Jan learned this morning the body had been found late last night but she wanted to wait until she was sure it had been announced before posting on it. You can read the radio news report here. A positive identification has not been made yet.

One thing we do want to make clear is this was not an accident.  It was not a case of someone missing a curve or losing control of a car.  We've never walked over to the area where he entered the property, (it would be quite a walk), but we assume he trespassed via a service road before crashing the SUV through the fence, driving across a field, down a hill and into the water.

We have had some comments and questions that lead us to believe some might have misunderstood. Jan did not call the police to report what she thought she saw but couldn't have seen. She emailed the chief of police the next morning after listening to the news report on the radio.

In answer to Karla's question about possible nightmares, thankfully Jan's mental and emotional health hasn't been affected. She regrets that she didn't call someone but at the time not calling was a rational decision. You don't call the police to report an optical illusion. It wasn't like we saw an entire SUV floating on the lake. It was just a lopsided V of the back of the roof and top of the back of the SUV sticking out of the water. And then it was gone without even a ripple. So it evidently went under while we were crossing the street.

And the city workers who found the damaged fence assumed it was vandalized, so they didn't realize anything until they saw debris from the vehicle floating in our drinking water. (Yes, that's where our drinking water was coming from. The city had to switch us to another source.) 

Since Jan is the type of human who is easily excited, she is very surprised she has been calm and at peace from the first. Any other time, she would have been trying to chase down someone with a cell phone or flagged down the police car that passed us on the corner. We believe the man was already dead by the time we started down the hill or she would have felt a sense of urgency.

Our thoughts and Jan's prayers are with the family and friends of the deceased. They will always carry the pain of losing their loved one and likely never know why he did this.

Please, if you are angry or depressed, don't hold it inside, as many humans are prone to do. Talk to someone. Say a prayer. Read a good book. Go for a walk. But don't go driving until you've calmed down. What one human does can affect a lot of other lives.

SUV in the Lake

Hey, Sam, Merci and Buddy here with today's post.  We were all eyewitnesses so we decided to write this together. What were we eyewitnesses to?  We're glad you asked us that.

Have you ever been in the position of explaining to police officers you saw something you knew wasn't possible, so you thought you imagined it and didn't report it? Well, Jan has joined that club.

While walking yesterday morning, we started down the hill. We turn at the bottom and retrace our route to home. Across the road is the lake where Jan made the video of the Marching Geese convention.

But there's something different about the view. What looks like the corner of a roof and back of a vehicle is sticking out of the water. But that isn't possible. The area is posted, fenced and locked. There is no way a non-work vehicle could be on the property, let alone in the lake.

Photo taken through the chain link fence.

We picked up the pace for a closer look. The object didn't move. At the corner, we waited on traffic. Jan kept a wary eye on an approaching bicyclist because we get excited and want to chase anything that moves. The cyclist stopped and we watched two vehicles drive by. The second one was a police car. We sped across the road and ... nothing. There was nothing in the water. Not even ripples.

It must have been an optical illusion, the sun playing tricks on us. So we turned around and started home.

Hours later, Jan was coming back from town and there were a lot of men and a boat down at the lake. Cars were pulled over and men were standing on higher ground for a good view of what was happening. That's when she realized she really had seen a vehicle just before it completely submerged.

This morning there was an item on the WTGA Fun101fm local news station. A man had taken a family vehicle and driven it through a fence and down the hill into the water. But the damaged fence was too far away for Jan to see. And who would have guessed?  This is not a case where someone could possibly have been driving down a road and missed a curve or lost control. This was deliberate.

Photo taken from the hill across the street and cropped

So Jan emailed the chief of police and said she had seen the SUV in the water. An officer Jan knows came by to get her phone number and the investigator for the case called to talk to her. Jan doesn't know anything, except the approximate time it happened.

The "accident" was discovered when an employee noticed some items floating in the water. According to the Thomaston Times website, at this time the driver's body has still not been found.  They are still searching for the body but there is a possibility he escaped through the open back hatch.

So we suggest if you see something that is so totally impossible you think you imagined it, report it anyway. No, not the little green Martians you see after a few too many, but the I stopped to cross the street and suddenly everything was back to normal sighting. You might have actually seen what you couldn't have seen.

Popping in and out

We're just going to do a quick newsy post today.  We know there is a lot more news and more hurricane Irene information on the blogs, but we haven't been able to visit as many as we'd like, so we'll just post on a couple of things that caught our attention today.


Autumn and Jasmine explain why they have been quiet for a while. There has been much sadness in their personal lives, as they have lost furry relatives and friends, as well as some very bad animal-related things going on where they live in Malaysia. They could use a kind word or two, so please stop by Autumn & Jasmine's Playground.

The Creek Cats posted a video of the hurricane passing through their area. It does not show the high winds that rocked their home at 3:30 am Saturday morning.

The Cat Street Boyz have some photos of the rushing water they can hear from their house.

Prayers are still needed for those affected by hurricane Irene over the weekend.   Many are still without electricity., in a flooded area or have other damage to contend with.  Khyra is one of those still without power, most likely because of a tree on a line. 

Hope you all have a great day!

Merci, Minnie, Max and Who?

Hey, Merci here.  We're all ready for this weekend's blog hop with a cute video of 3 pugs watching themselves on YouTube. I'm thinking if  Jan confused us like that, we should be swimming in treats for weeks. But in reality, Jan confuses us all the time. Mainly because between sentences she forgets the subject.

I don't know the name of the 3rd pug but Minnie and Max are two of them.  And you can follow them on Twitter @MinnieMaxPugs.

Enjoy your weekend!


If the video doesn't play, click here.