Police reported that three people died after walking on a frozen lake. According to the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, two men and a woman were trying to take a photo in Woods Canyon Lake near Payson, Arizona when the ice broke, causing the three individuals to fall in. 

The Sheriff’s office spokesman Jon Paxton told ABC News that the victims were 25 to 35 yards away from the shore and were with five other people.

Two children and a woman tried to rescue the three victims, but they also fell through the ice and hardly made it out in time due to their attempts to rescue the others. They then tried to get cell service after getting out of the water so they could reach first responders.

Haritha Muddana’s body was the first victim found on Monday. Deputies and fire unit personnel tried to administer life-saving measures, but it was too late. 

Authorities conducted an expanded search in which all three victims were found and identified on Tuesday. Paxton said hypothermia occurs very quickly and is even worse and more complicated if the person cannot swim. Two victims included a couple who were with their kids at the lake when the incident occurred.  

Authorities identified the victims as Narayana Muddana, Haritha Muddana, and Gokul Mediseti. The report said they were all from India but were residing in Chandler, Arizona, southeast of Phoenix.  

Narayana and Haritha Muddana had two young daughters named Pujitha and Harshita. Narayana’s brother-in-law Naresh Babu Chimmineni told the local Indian outlet, The Hindu, that they are now staying with their neighbor. 

Chimmineni added that the US authorities have said the girls can only return to India if they have a blood relative there, since they are still minors. This means that the children’s grandparents, either the paternal or the maternal, must come to the US to bring the children back to India.