Dog Drowns Off Cliffwood Beach

Valiant efforts to save a dog that scampered onto the ice of Raritan Bay this morning might have worked, if it hadn't kept eluding the rescuers.

Instead, it slipped off an ice floe, fell victim to the icy water temperature and sank before rescuers had a chance to retrieve it.

The incident unfolded shortly after 7 AM, when police in Aberdeen were alerted to a dog that leaped a sea wall at Cliffwood Beach.

According to police, it appeared to be a pit bull mixed breed with no owner in sight. By the time officers arrived, it had traveled so far onto the icy surface that they needed binoculars to watch it, a police spokesman said.

The distance also hindered their ability to tell whether it wore an identification tag, he said.

Sizing up the situation, police notified firefighters from Matawan and Keyport, who set up extension gear and clambered out, in an effort to coax the dog back to shore. But every time it drew near to rescuers, it turned around and headed away, police said.

The effort ended around 9 AM when the dog lost its footing and was overcome, police said.