UPDATE: A correction has been made to this article regarding the victim’s name.

A resident of Maine who formerly worked for the city of Dunkirk has died in an apparent drowning accident.

The County, a website for The Aroostook Republican & News, Houlton Pioneer Times, The Star-Herald, and St. John Valley Times / Fiddlehead Focus, all in Maine, reports that Sami Manirath, 52, of Fort Kent, died shortly after an accident on Tuesday in which her vehicle rolled into the Fish River.

She was formerly known as Sami Wallace. She was the attorney of the city of Dunkirk during the late Richard Frey’s administration. She was the first attorney he appointed when he was first sworn into office in 2002.

According to The County, Manirath was known in the community as the owner of Sami’s Cuisine and Cocktails, a restaurant she opened in late 2022. She lived in Laos until she was 8 years old, then moved to Buffalo, and then to Fort Kent in 2022.

Police responded to the incident at 4:45 p.m. and, according to Fort Kent Police Chief Michael DeLena, the crash originated off East Main Street. Manirath’s vehicle, a white 2023 GMC Acadia, left the road and entered an apartment building parking lot, where it veered off a ledge, struck an embankment and rolled multiple times before landing in Fish River.

The police chief told local media that the accident is still under investigation and they do not have any indications as to what caused the accident.