3 Missing N. Dakota Students Found Dead

(AP)  Last updated at 9:09 p.m. Eastern

Three missing North Dakota college softball players were found dead Tuesday in a Jeep pulled from a pond, and police said they believed the women were in the vehicle when they made two desperate calls to friends for help.

Police Lt. Rod Banyai said officers are investigating the cause of the deaths and autopsies are planned. He said he believes the women were in the Jeep when they called for help, but he didn't know whether it already was under water when those calls were made.

"At this time, foul play is not suspected," Banyai said Tuesday night.

Authorities had been searching since late Sunday night for Kyrstin Gemar, 22, of San Diego; Afton Williamson, 20, of Lake Elsinore, Calif.; and Ashley Neufeld, 21, of Brandon, Manitoba.

The Dickinson State University students were believed to be in the white 1997 Jeep Cherokee with California plates when two of their friends received telephone calls before the lines went dead. Police described the first as a "very scratchy" call for help in which one of the women said they were near a lake and water.

Banyai said the 12-foot deep pond where the women were found is on a farm northwest of Dickinson, a city of 16,000 people about 100 miles west of Bismarck and 60 miles east of the Montana state line. Vehicle tracks were found leading into the pond Tuesday afternoon, he said.

"After that was located, the plane flew over the top and it could see that there was a white object in the water," Banyai said. The submerged vehicle was pulled from the pond about two hours later.

Banyai said the vehicle will be checked for defects. He said authorities don't know how it got into the pond.

Kyrstin Gemar's parents, Lenny and Claire, said during an earlier news conference at police headquarters, before the bodies were found, that they had talked to their daughter late Saturday night. Lenny Gemar said it was not uncommon for his daughter and her friends to go star gazing on the spur of the moment.

The women's families were not at the news conference where police announced the deaths.

Students at Dickinson State, where the women were stars on the school's softball team, led a prayer service Monday night that drew more than 300 people. Another service was scheduled at the 2,700-student school for Tuesday night.

"We are very deeply saddened by this turn of events and we are going to mobilize all of our resources to work with the families and the students on campus," Dickinson State spokeswoman Constance Walter said. "They will be greatly missed by their teammates and others."

The college lists Gemar as a senior business major who played third base on the softball team. Neufeld is a senior outfielder who is working on a degree in psychology, and Williamson, a junior, is a pitcher majoring in psychology with a minor in coaching.

Gov. John Hoeven issued a statement extending sympathy to the families and appreciation to those who participated in the search, "which ended in a way we all prayed it wouldn't."

[suzee2253]

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[Itshottoday]

oh my gosh, this makes me so sad. What the hell happened?!?

[juudee]

My sincere condolences to the families of these students. I know the lure of stargazing and the quiet draw of nature at night. This is a case of just being in the wrong place, not knowing exactly the land, or even guessing there could be water they would not see in time to react. Once into the water, I'm sure they panicked ... I feel for you as a mother of college age sons and with the knowledge that my love of nature could have led me into similar places! There but for the grace ... so sorry ...

[marlynmay]

Rural North Dakota is full of these ponds and sloughs. They sometimes come within a few feet of the road and when there is lots of rain the roads are flooded. Sometimes it is difficult to see them because of the reeds and grasses that grow along the edge. There are no streetlights and it is very dark (hence the stargazing), all it takes is one wrong turn on an unfamiliar road and you are in trouble. My sympathy to the families of these girls. Let a deer jump out in front of the car and make an evasive move and you could easily end up in a ditch or some water. I don't why so many people want to make it sound as if something weird was going on or that the girls were drinking, can't they wait for reports from authorities?

[marlynmay]

Rural North Dakota is full of these ponds and sloughs. They sometimes come within a few feet of the road and when there is lots of rain the roads are flooded. Sometimes it is difficult to see them because of the reeds and grasses that grow along the edge. There are no streetlights and it is very dark (hence the stargazing), all it takes is one wrong turn on an unfamiliar road and you are in trouble. My sympathy to the families of these girls. Let a deer jump out in front of the car and make an evasive move and you could easily end up in a ditch or some water. I don't why so many people want to make it sound as if something weird was going on or that the girls were drinking, can't they wait for reports from authorities?

[DSU077]

First of all, who is anyone to comment on what they should of done, it's easy to say that sitting in your house but unless you have been in that situation you have no idea. How many people are taught what to do in that situation? I'm guessing not a lot. North Dakota is cold and water is freezing! Also girls were not out partying, if you knew them you would never make such a stupid comment. It's a tragedy, some of us lost people we have known for years and we have no answers why. Also they weren't sitting by water they were driving down a dirt road (which there is a lot of and it is really easy to get lost in the dark) and they ended up in a field and drove off the edge, they didn't even know was there. I think a lot of people need to keep their big mouth comments to themselves!

[erasmus111]

So you knew the girls, did you?

Some people THINK they know others, but they really don't.

If you are driving with your headlights on, you can see the road. When you leave the road, you can also see that too. I saw a picture of it and when they started driving on the grass, they would have known they had left the road. Unless they were drunk, that is.

[bobnjersey]

[How many people are taught what to do in that situation? I'm guessing not a lot.]

in the last five years i've seen between 6 to 10 summaries of how to handle a 'car in the water' scenario. it probably should be part of getting your license so that at least you've been exposed to the strategy.

even w/ preparation ... it would likely be an overwhelming thing to deal with ... but it might have saved their lives.

young drivers will make mistakes ... and likely panic in situations like this ... which is all the more reason why they should be aware of how to deal with it.

[rondivoo]

I agree with one commentor, if they could call friends (a really dumb thing to do), why not call "911" ... makes much more sense. Why would they sit in the vehicle "near the water" knowing the car was going to be submerged? If they had time to call friends, they had time to get out, it would seem. Strange event. I have to wonder what really happened.

[DaVicar8]

The parents of the victims will probably sue Jeep for some kind of vehicle defect that caused the drownding.

[bubbadubba]

"The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates 600 people die yearly in immersed vehicles. According to the agency, 2,000 nonfatal crashes occurred in 2004 in which vehicles were immersed, and 282 fatal immersions occurred."

All of those cars had power windows.
282 people drowned.
I rest my case.
You can put your life in the hands of that window breaker thing if you want to.
Power windows are death traps and with the proper gearing are not even needed. We won't get into how many children die when their heads get caught in power windows.
But for those of you who just love your power windows, have fun.
A simple emergency crank attached to the mechanism would save lives but that might cost a few dollars and ruin the looks of the interior of the car so people will just have to die a horrible death.

[maiingan]

I think your suggestion is brilliant! I'm still driving a "classic" car with hand-crank windows. When I can afford a new car, I'll have to create a 'rule of thumb' for window safety where there's a "water hazard." Meanwhile, I urge you to tell your emergency-hand-crank idea to automakers, government agencies, and your elected reprentatives...this is along the lines of the emergency opening latch on the inside of car trunks. When the law is passed, they can call this the "Bubbadubba Emergency Hand-Operated Car Window Crank."

[Skruffy1]

A good piece of safety equipment that might be a good idea to have in vehicles in areas where there are lots of bodies of water is a little tool that's a combination hammer (for breaking a window) and seatbelt cutter. Besides doors and windows maybe being difficult to open under water, there are many ways that seatbelts can become jammed, or just be difficult to release, by the occupant or rescuers. I wouldn't know if this device could have saved these young women. My condolances to the families.

[mtcolquitt]

My condolences to all the families. That's really all that should be said here!