(HAMILTON COUNTY REPORTER) — On Tuesday, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office Patrol Deputies were dispatched to the area of 296th Street and Carpenter Road regarding an inverted vehicle in a culvert.

Responding deputies were advised by dispatch at the time that the car was fully submerged in water.

Upon arrival, deputies along with an Indiana Conservation Officer and fire personnel from White River Township and the Jackson Township fire departments, began rescue attempts. It was determined that the occupant was still inside the vehicle and unable to be extricated due to the windows being submerged.

Without regard for their personal safety, Deputy Rick Hay, Deputy Scott Hazel, and DNR Conservation Officer Billy Doss removed their personal safety equipment, entered the water, and worked to extricate the victim. The fire departments’ apparatus and tools were pivotal in ensuring the rescue.

Through teamwork and brainstorming, a winch from a responding fire apparatus was used to angle the vehicle upward so a window was out of the water, enabling it to be broken, thus gaining access the driver. The driver was removed from the vehicle and pulled to the bank of the ditch, where medics tended to the individual. The driver was transported to St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis with complaints of chest pain.

Without these measures taken by the first responders, the outcome for the victim could have been much worse and likely have resulted in a drowning.