Off-duty firefighters rush to save driver crashed in frigid Oregon river, officials say
Off-duty firefighters discovered a wrecked car in a rushing river in Oregon and jumped into the water to help the stuck driver, officials said.
The crash was reported at 11:23 a.m. March 22 near the Yukwah Campground in Sweet Home, the Sweet Home Fire District said in a Facebook post.
A driver had been going east on U.S. Route 20, also known as the South Santiam Highway, when they drove 30 feet down an embankment before crashing into tree and landing in the South Santiam River, fire officials said.
Off-duty firefighters rushed to save the driver as the frigid water rushed up to their head in the vehicle, officials said.
The firefighters got the stuck driver out of the vehicle and to the shoreline.
Crews who responded to the crash then used a rope system to get the driver to the road where an ambulance was waiting, fire officials said.
The driver had non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to a hospital.
Fire officials said they do not “normally encourage bystanders to put themselves in harm’s way,” but these firefighters were trained and had the knowledge to help the driver.
The two firefighters were from the Crook County Fire and Rescue and the Ochoco Forest Service.
Sweet Home is about a 45-mile drive northeast from Eugene.
