As the search continues for a man who fell through the ice while taking a Valentine’s Day walk with his wife, whose body has already been found, loved ones are remembering the devoted couple.
“They walk all the beaches, all the time,” Dawn Varnum told independent station WHDH of her friends, Kit and Jerry Boucher.
“They were a very loving couple,” Varnum continued, according to the outlet, which reported they met when they were both 15. “It’s devastating to the whole community, anyone who knew them is devastated by this tragedy.”
The Bouchers hailed from Connecticut, where Kit, 71, worked as a kindergarten teacher and Jerry, 72, worked for Connecticut Natural Gas.
Almost 20 years ago, they moved to Eastham, a coastal resort town straddling the arm of Cape Cod.
The couple volunteered in their community and was often seen walking their black lab along Bee’s River, WHDH reported.
On Kit’s Facebook page, there are numerous photos that she took while walking Casey on the beach. In one such photo posted in January, Kit captioned a photo of Casey: “My BFF.”
This past Saturday morning, Jerry and Kit were on a walk with their beloved canine when tragedy struck.
At approximately 9 a.m. local time, authorities received a report of a dog that “was wet and appeared to be in distress” at First Encounter Beach, the Eastham Police Department said in an initial statement.
When an officer arrived, he heard a “woman screaming for help” near Bee’s River. The officer tried to help the woman, who had fallen through the ice, but he also fell into the water.
A second officer attempted to reach the woman’s location, but also fell through the ice, authorities said.
Both officers were able to return to the shore and were transported to a local hospital.
Meanwhile, a search and rescue dive team began searching for the missing woman and discovered her under the ice by 11:12 a.m. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
During the initial search, officials learned that the victim was out walking with her husband and their dog.
“It was determined that the male subject likely fell through the ice prior to the arrival of emergency personnel and did not resurface,” police said in an update on Saturday.
As of Tuesday, Feb. 17, the search continues for Jerry, according to a search update from police.
Although questions remain about exactly what happened, those who knew the couple have their own theories.
“He loved his dog so much he walked Casey twice a day every day of the week, and I think that’s what happened here,” Carl Nyman, a neighbor, told ABC affiliate WCVB. “Casey went out on the ice, and [Jerry] made the mistake of going out and trying to save him.”
In a statement shared with WHDH, the couple’s daughter said the family is “devastated by the tragic loss of our beloved parents.”
“We are deeply grateful for the heroic efforts of the first responders in Eastham,” she continued. “We are thankful for the outpouring of love, and appreciate the privacy and discretion the community is extending to our family during this unimaginably difficult time.”
