Pennsylvania

Civilians Rescue Woman After SUV Crashes Into Creek

A woman is in the hospital but still alive after Good Samaritans jumped into action when her SUV crashed into the water in the Cobbs Creek section of the city on Tuesday.

Officials say the 60-year-old woman was driving her SUV on Cobbs Creek Parkway when she somehow lost control and drove off the roadway, crashing into a ravine below.

A pair of sisters who were driving by spotted the SUV in the water. One of the sisters called 911 while the other jumped out of the car and flagged down other drivers for help.

"I saw a car coming towards the ravine, just flying towards the creek," said Rita Graham, one of the sisters.

Police say three men who were flagged down then jumped into the water and swam towards the woman, who was inside the vehicle unconscious. The Good Samaritans broke out a window of the SUV and then used a pair of box cutters to cut the woman from her seat belt. They then dragged her motionless body out of the water and up the hill.

The trio then began to perform CPR on the woman as they waited for medical crews to arrive. The men say they believed she was dead until they noticed one of her fingers start to move.

"I had never done this before so I didn't know how she should act or shouldn't act," said Marcell Port, one of the rescuers. "We gave her the CPR and she wasn't responding. Finally as we gave up, that's when she started responding and her eyes started to open up."

EMS rushed the woman to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania where she is currently in stable condition.

SkyForce10 also captured medics loading another person in an ambulance at the scene. According to witnesses however, that person was an elderly man who fainted while watching the rescue.

Contact Us