Local police officers and firefighters rescued an elderly man on Wednesday morning after his truck veered off the roadway and into a pond in Winter Park.
At around 5:40 a.m. on Wednesday, January 15, a Winter Park Police Department officer was flagged down by a good Samaritan who advised that a vehicle had veered off the roadway and into a body of water just outside the Winter Park Racquet Club, according to the police department.
Additional police officers quickly arrived on scene, along with Winter Park Fire-Rescue Department crews, and they observed a truck that was partially submerged in the pond. The vehicle’s sole occupant, an 80-year-old man, was disoriented and trapped inside the sinking vehicle.
As officers worked to secure the truck, firefighters utilized a tool to break one of the vehicle’s windows. The firefighters were then able to safely remove the elderly man from the vehicle.
After a brief medical assessment, the elderly man was transported to a local hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
That morning was cold, with temperatures in the low 40’s. Law enforcement credits the good Samaritan, who works at the Winter Park Racquet Club, with helping to save the man’s life.
According to police, the good Samaritan’s actions “provided [first] responders with the valuable minutes to free the driver from the water.”
Law enforcement believes that the elderly man may have experienced a medical emergency, which led to the incident.