NORTH HAMPTON, N.H. – The ex-husband of a woman accused of trying to drown the couple’s two children says the children are “happy, healthy and safe” despite the ordeal.

Michael Brigham, 34, told The Eagle-Tribune of Lawrence, Mass., and WMUR-TV he hopes his ex-wife, Traci Brennan, 38, gets help.

“We’re making the best we can out of a horrible situation,” Brigham said Thursday. “Despite what’s happened, she’ll always be their mother. We hope that their mom gets all the help she needs.”

Brennan is charged with trying to drown the boy, now 5, and girl, now 9, in the Piscataqua River under the U.S. Route 1 bridge in Kittery, Maine, on Sept. 12. She was released Thursday from York County Jail in Maine on $50,000 bail and will be arraigned in York County Superior Court on Monday.

Maine police first learned about the allegations in April and started their investigation.

Brigham said the incident was “a tragedy for not only us, but for Traci as well.”

“She is the mother of my children and I’ll always have an affinity for her,” he said.

Brennan remarried after she and Brigham were divorced last year and moved to Wolfeboro. She is charged with one count of aggravated attempted murder, two counts of attempted murder and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

Brigham declined to discuss what happened to his children, but said the physical injuries were “minor.”

“Obviously, emotionally a lot has happened and they’re both in therapy,” Brigham said. “We’re all in therapy.”

Brigham said he has tried his best to shield his children from the publicity.

“I shield them from 50 percent of it. The other 50 percent is out there in the world they live in,” he said. “They know that their mommy has been arrested and hopefully she’s going to get some help because of this.

“No one wishes any ill will on their mother. She obviously has some things she has to work out.”

The children live with Brigham. Brigham and Brennan had agreed to share equal time with their children through a custody arrangement in their divorce proceeding.

Since her arrest, the children have been solely in Brigham’s care, said William Boc, Brigham’s lawyer.

“Traci has not had any contact with the children for several months by court order,” Boc said.