UPDATE 8:48 p.m. Saturday – Sheriff Falletti identified the deceased woman as Sarah Ouellet. A native of the Ark City and Winfield areas, her maiden name was Kanelakos, according to those that knew her.
The accident occurred in the 31000 block of 141st Rd., Falletti said. A child had gone into the water and Ouellet,35, went in to attempt a rescue. She began to struggle, became unresponsive, stopped breathing and later died.
The child, Ouellet’s son, escaped the water and is alive and well. He was downstream and holding onto a tree limb when he was located and rescued, according to information released by the sheriff’s office Monday.
A local woman died Saturday afternoon in a water accident on Grouse Creek in rural Cowley County. The drowning occurred near Silverdale east of Ark City.
Sheriff David Falletti confirmed a person had died but had no additional details. Emergency crews were called to the area and found an adult female unresponsive. She was not breathing.
The woman, who was in her 30s, was pronounced dead a short time later.
A child was also involved in the accident, and was said to be alive and alert, according to radio traffic from the scene.
The name of the deceased has not been made public pending notification of family.
