A 75-year-old man died the day after he drove his vehicle off the roadway and into a pond near the Brainerd Wal-Mart late Tuesday afternoon.
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Battalion Chief Rick Boatwright with the Chattanooga Fire Department said the man was leaving the Wal-Mart and traveling north on Greenway View Drive when he drove off the roadway and down an embankment to the water below.
When responders arrived, the car was completely submerged and upside down. Firefighters clambered down the embankment, climbed on top of the car and attached a winch, which was used to pull the vehicle onto its side to so they could see the driver.
Once the vehicle had been raised partially, firefighters broke one of the windows and pulled the unconscious man out of the car. Firefighters immediately began administering cardio pulmonary resuscitation, according to a fire department news release. It has not been reported how long the man was underwater before responders arrived.
Paramedics with Hamilton County Emergency Services took the man to Erlanger hospital. Two of the firefighters rode with the victim in the ambulance and continued CPR. The man's identity has not been revealed. Crews were able to retrieve the white Cadillac from the water.
"They really had to think outside the box on this one," said Boatwright. "The car was totally submerged so they knew they had to act quickly, and they did just that. We are all hoping and praying for a positive outcome for the patient."
Boatwright said the stretch of road that the driver wrecked on has been a known trouble spot for traffic. He said another car crashed in a similar way a little over a year ago, but the driver in that case was able to extricate himself.
A spokesman for the Chattanooga Police Department said the traffic division will likely be looking at potential preventative measures along the road, including guard rails, in the wake of Tuesday's accident.