A firefighter and police officer jumped into action to save a woman who was trapped in a creek in Chester County, Pennsylvania.
The dramatic rescue occurred Monday morning in Kennett Township after an SUV crashed into a creek off Cypress Street.
Longwood Fire Sergeant Brandon Fuller and Kennett Square Police Officer Mark Todd were among the responders who saw the driver, a 55-year-old woman, trapped inside as the SUV sank into the water.
“We had to just make a quick decision to try and jump in,” Sergeant Fuller said. “And we could hear the occupant in the vehicle screaming.”
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Sergeant Fuller and Officer Todd both jumped into the water to rescue the woman.
“The water was freezing cold. I think we looked it up, it was 46 degrees, so once your body hits the water everything sort of slowly shuts down,” Sergeant Fuller said. “So trying to even communicate with each other and ask her questions, it was tough.”
As the SUV continued to sink, Officer Todd raced to break the back window while Sergeant Fuller jumped into the vehicle.
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“I used a, it’s called a chambermaid,” Officer Todd said. “It’s used for measuring brake parts on a commercial vehicle. I had it in my bag so I took it in with me and was able to break the window with that.”
Eventually, the men were able to pull the woman out from the backseat.
“As we were breaking the window, the vehicle went completely underwater, so luckily he had a hold of her, probably I would say, the top half of her body, and then I just got underneath,” Sergeant Fuller said.
Cellphone video captured the aftermath of the crash as crews worked for hours to get the vehicle out of the water.
The woman’s family told NBC10 she remains in the hospital and currently can’t move her legs to walk on her own. They’re also grateful for the quick actions of the first responders. Both Todd and Fuller said they were simply doing their jobs.
“I would say any officer that was put in that situation or any member of the fire department, they would have done the same,” Officer Todd said.
Officials continue to investigate what caused the woman to initially crash.
