More to the man who fell through the ice

Wife shares her gratitude

MOSES LAKE - Two years ago this week, Teri McCurry lost her husband to the freezing water in Moses Lake.

McCurry approached the Columbia Basin Herald after reading an article about the Moses Lake Fire Department's ice rescue equipment. She asked to share details about the death of her husband, Mike McCurry, to shed some light on her thanks to the firefighters who tried to rescue him and her concerns for their equipment.

Teri said most people know her husband went on the ice Feb. 27, 2006, to retrieve a dog who fell through, but she says there's much more to the story.

Prior to the incident, Mike was working at a construction site where a concrete truck accidentally ran over and killed a dog who recently gave birth to puppies, Teri said. Mike felt bad about what happened and spent time helping the pet owner care for the new puppies. He grew attached to the animals.

Then one of the puppies wandered onto the frozen lake and fell through the ice.

Mike saw it happen and didn't want the pet owner to go through the loss of another pet so he ventured out on the ice to try to save the animal, Teri said. She describes her husband as a man with a big heart and says no one can hold themselves responsible for his actions to go onto the lake.

Mike, a 20-year Navy veteran, went on the ice with a piece of plywood to balance his weight to prevent himself from breaking through, Teri said. It didn't work; he fell through.

The Moses Lake Fire Department and Grant County Fire District No. 5 responded to the incident and deployed two firefighters onto the lake to pull him to shore, she said. Teri was at the scene once she found out.

From the lake, Mike waved at her to notify he was going to be okay, she said.

Teri said he was submerged in the water for nearly an hour and the two firefighters trying to pull him to safety were in the water alongside him for nearly just as long. There was difficulty pulling him to shore, the ice kept breaking and at the time there wasn't as much water rescue equipment available as there is now to reach him.

Mike was taken to a hospital in Wenatchee where was pronounced dead.

Teri said there are many people who blame themselves for Mike's death. She doesn't blame anyone for what happened; it was an accident.

Teri said she is thankful to the two firefighters who risked their lives trying to save her husband. At the time of the interview, she said she hadn't spoken to them because she was scared her emotions might consume her and possibly stir up bad memories for the two men.

The day following the interview with the Columbia Basin Herald she met with one of the men who tried to save her husband. Teri said the reunion proved to be a tearful moment of closuare for each of them.

"They could have died with him," Teri said. "I am so grateful for them risking their lives. They were helpless. They did the very best they could with what they had."

Since the incident, each department has accumulated more equipment.

Teri encourages people to send donations to each department to ensure they have the proper equipment and the proper vehicles to transport the equipment.

Mike left behind two kids, Jenn and Ryan.

When Mike died, it was the same month as their wedding anniversary, Valentine's Day, Jenn's sweet 16 birthday party was approaching and Ryan was a senior in high school.

Teri said her biggest pain is for her children because they miss Mike.

"It took me 18 months to fall apart and grieve," she said.

For the past six months, Teri has only begun to grieve because she was trying to make sure everyone around her was okay.

"He's forever around us," she said.

Even though Mike is gone, Teri says his presence is with her.

Shortly after his death, she sat down at her computer to log onto the Internet but instead of the regular Internet page, a window popped up and read, "hi." Teri said Mike only typed in lowercase letters.

"In my heart I have to believe it was him telling me it was okay," she said.

In her daily life, she sees glimpses of him. Her children dream about him.

"We were supposed to live happily ever after," Teri said.

This past Valentine's Day she heard a few familiar songs on the radio. She heard two songs played at Mike's military funeral and a third song special to her. The radio played a song Mike said was Teri's song. The lyrics state, "I'm gonna love you, forever and ever, forever and ever, Amen."