Sergeant Howard Snider drowned in Lake Geode while attempting to save a young girl who was in a boat that was drifting away from the dock as the result of strong waves.

He jumped into the water without a life jacket to bring the boat back to shore but suffered a pulmonary embolism and sank below the surface. His body was recovered two hours later.

Sergeant Snider was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Ames Police Department for 23 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.