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Who was Jason Lagore? Ohio officer dies while trying to rescue teen girl who drowned after falling through ice

He reportedly fell ill after making it to the scene and was unable to be resuscitated after he was taken to the hospital

HIGHLAND COUNTY, OHIO: A 16-year-old girl and a police officer died and a teenage boy was injured around 6:30 pm on Tuesday on the north side of Rocky Fork Lake, near a private dock, in Highland County, Ohio, said reports.  

The 13-year old boy that was injured had tried to find the girl that had drowned in the icy lake before he ended up freeing himself, reported the news station, WCPO. The girl was pulled out of the lake at 11 pm after she was trapped under the ice for hours. She later died in the hospital due to her injuries. The police officer that responded to the call was Officer Jason Lagore, who later died after reportedly suffering a medical emergency. WLWT5 reported that he suffered an apparent heart attack while he was trying to rescue the teens. While no further details about his death were revealed, it was reported that he had fallen ill after making it to the scene and was unable to be resuscitated after he was taken to hospital. 

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Who was Jason Lagore?

Lagore, 38 was an Ohio Natural Resources Department police officer who according to friend Shaun Lentini had helped many people. Lentini said, "He assisted on countless, countless search and rescues, bringing closure to families and also finding people and being able to help them." According to Highland County Coroner, the preliminary results reveal that LaGore had a heart attack. Lentini added that the late officer who had a "big heart and big vision" began the K9 program for the division of parks and watercraft at ODNR and had led the first K9 academy. He had been working for the ODNR for the past 15 years.

A thread on the Lagore by the account @DTMsport revealed, that the officer was a 2004 graduate from Hocking College and has a degree in Wildlife Management. He had started at the Ohio Division of Parks and watercraft in 2002 and later became a Park Officer in 2005. He was assigned to Caesar Creek State Park in Warren County. In 2011, he became a K9 handler working with dogs named Ranger and Sarge.

"He was well respected. He did a lot of training around all of Ohio. He worked with a lot of organizations with search and rescue. When he wasn't working, he loved hunting. He was a guy that I went over his house for dinner and he'd send me home with some deer," Lentini added. Lagore is survived by his wife Michelle, his two sons, and his K9 partners.