One year after dogs die from poison pond, owner reacts to city-installed warning signs

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Just over a year ago we brought you the story of a woman whose three dogs tragically died after swimming in a seemingly harmless body of water. Now the City of Wilmington is warning others about the dangers.

Wilmington resident Melissa Martin loved her dogs and says she didn’t think anything of it when she let them play at a pond on Independence Boulevard last August. Within several hours all three dogs had died.

An emergency veterinarian suspected the dogs had been exposed to cyanobacteria, more commonly known a s blue-green algae. This was later confirmed by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

Cyanobacteria can form in retention ponds during hot summer months.

According to a city spokesman, this incident prompted the City of Wilmington to install signs at ponds throughout the city, warning of the dangers. Martin was pleasantly surprised to learn this.

This is your friendly reminder that neither you nor your pet should take a dip in a retention pond, no matter how hot it gets outside. Hot weather breeds cyanobacteria that can cause serious harm or death.

Stay safe, stay cool, but stay out of the retention ponds. pic.twitter.com/znMQH0jdir

— Wilmington, NC — WEAR A MASK (@CityofWilm) August 17, 2020

“I’m so glad they did,” Martin said. “At first I didn’t think they would.”

Martin says she hopes people will heed the warning.

“Last night over at Ogden Park I saw a guy throwing a ball in a pond for his dog and I was like ‘dude, I lost my three dogs a year ago,’ he’s like ‘it’s fine ma’am, it’s fine.’ I just want people to know and be aware,” Martin said.

Martin’s dog Harpo was a therapy dog who gained a lot of attention on social media. She believes that platform has also been effective in spreading the word.

“I get messages from people still all over the world, they’re like ‘I saw this article and it was about you and your dogs’ or whatever, so it definitely has worked, talking about it.”

Martin says she’s extremely thankful for the support she’s received from the community over the past year, and that some good has come out of this tragedy.

“I get pictures of signs every day, which is pretty cool that people realize those signs are up because of our dogs,” she said. “They did have a mission and they accomplished that.

Martin also notes her two smaller dogs did not actually swim in the water, but were playing in the mud near the water’s edge. She says all three dogs were at the emergency vet 15 minutes after showing symptoms and they still couldn’t be saved.