A Greenwood man died yesterday after falling through the ice on a pond possibly while trying to rescue his dogs.

Johnson County Sheriff Doug Cox says that authorities have identified the man as 43 year old Brian Persinger. The victim’s wife said he did not show up to work yesterday and she found his running truck sitting at a property they own where the pond was located.

SCUBA divers from Johnson County and Indiana Department of Natural Resources  recovered his body from the freezing waters just after midnight . Markings on the icy pond suggest he may have scooted onto the ice to rescue an animal, but there were no immediate signs of the dogs in the water.

Cox praised the dedication of the SCUBA divers.

“This is one of those incidents that we hate to see happen, but it is important for the public to know that there are people who put their lives on the line in some very dangerous situations for them to have closure,” Cox said.