Man dies in freak accident that left cab of truck stuck in frozen lake, NH police say

A 70-year-old man drowned in a bizarre accident that saw just the cab of a pickup truck stuck vertically in a frozen New Hampshire pond.

It happened shortly after 8 a.m. Sunday, March 13, on Berry Pond in Moultonborough, according to New Hampshire State Police. The town is about 70 miles north of Manchester.

“A 2005 Chevrolet Silverado, with two occupants, broke through the ice. The driver was able to exit the cab but the passenger was trapped inside,” state police said in a news release.

“The driver and good Samaritans attempted to get the trapped passenger out of the vehicle before it became submerged. Despite these efforts, the passenger was unable to exit the vehicle.”

A New Hampshire Fish and Game dive team pulled the man from the truck shortly before noon, but he died at the scene, officials said. The identity of the victim, who is from Moultonborough, has not been released.

The pickup was on the ice checking safety and depth in advance of a Sunday race being staged by the Lakes Region Ice Racing Club, WMUR reported.

Berry Pond is no more than 8 feet deep with about a foot of ice on it, but the pickup managed to hit a “soft spot” that was on the intended race track, state officials told the station.

This story was originally published March 14, 2022 at 7:21 AM with the headline "Man dies in freak accident that left cab of truck stuck in frozen lake, NH police say."