COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. -- A man was transported to St. Cloud Hospital after he was rescued Wednesday from a submerged vehicle by an off-duty Eden Prairie firefighter.
At 12:39 p.m., the State Patrol received a call that a Chevrolet Silverado headed east on Interstate Highway 94 near the St. John's University exit had left the road and was submerged in water up to its roof, Lt. Brad Ouart said.
"The party had a medical condition, and it's believed this was the reason he went off the road," Ouart said. "He was the single party in the vehicle and was transported by ambulance to the St. Cloud Hospital."
The patrol is withholding the driver's name until family is notified. The man was conscious when ambulances took him away, Ourat said.
The Eden Prairie firefighter, William Beumer, was traveling behind the Silverado, Ouart said.
"I was heading back home from up north," Beumer said late Wednesday night.
Beumer is a fire inspector for the city of St. Paul and is trained as an emergency medical technician.
"The truck wasn't filling up that fast. It was up to about the hood level," Beumer said describing the scene. "It appeared stable, so I was able to make access through the window."
State Patrol troopers and the St. Joseph Fire Department arrived on the scene quickly after Beumer's passenger and other passers-by called 911, Beumer said.
He's dealt with water rescues before as part of his EMT and firefighting work. "That training was very helpful and valuable to what was needed to be done," Beumer said.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
