Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

One child dies, another critical after SUV plunges into Lake Fernan

One child died and another child was in critical condition late today after the vehicle they were riding in slid off Fernan Lake Road and went into Fernan Lake. Coeur d’Alene firefighters pulled both children from their submerged SUV a short time after the 1:45 p.m. accident. Authorities said that the children’s mother, Sarah Deshazer, 25, of Coeur d’Alene, was turning around on the road when one wheel went off the roadway, causing her Dodge Durango to slide into the lake. She and her husband, Michael Deshazer, 28, were able to escape the vehicle, but could not reach the children before the vehicle dropped into 12 feet of murky water. Major Ben Wolfinger of the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that both children were initially taken to Kootenai Medical Center where the five-year-old was pronounced dead. The 1-year-old was airlifted to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane. An investigation was underway, Wolfinger said.