STAMFORD — A truck fell into the harbor at Cummings Park on Monday afternoon after the driver was doing "doughnuts" in the fresh snow in the parking lot, according to Stamford Police.
A man and a woman inside the vehicle were able to safely get back to shore.
Stamford fire officials said they were first notified of the accident around 2:10 p.m. Police Capt. Richard Conklin said a call came in around 2:30 p.m. of someone losing control of a vehicle that fell into the water.
The first units on scene found the four-door pickup truck partly underwater about 40 feet offshore, Deputy Fire Chief Matthew Palmer said in a statement. A female occupant of the truck was shouting from the bed of the pickup that a male was still inside.
"The extreme winds, snow, and tide continued to move the vehicle and cause it to fill with water," Palmer said.
Three firefighters entered the water in cold water suits and swam out while one of the department's tower trucks positioned its ladder over the truck. Scuba divers were also sent out to the sinking vehicle.
"The firefighters in the water were able to calm the female occupant and assist her into the tower ladder. As weather conditions continued to deteriorate, the vehicle continued to submerge deeper into the frigid waters of Long Island Sound," Palmer said.
Firefighters attempted to pull the man out through a rear window of the truck, but were unable to.
As the truck sank completely below the water, a firefighter who held onto the man's arm was able to pull him through a window. He was then rescued using the ladder truck.
Both occupants of the truck were turned over to EMS personnel. The man was taken to Stamford Hospital for treatment, while the woman declined treatment.
Police Sgt. Jeff Booth said firefighters handled the water rescue while the police patrol division is handling the investigation into the crash itself.
Fire Department divers were called to the scene, according to initial dispatch reports. One diver was still in the water as of 3:20 p.m. and assisted a tow company in removing the truck from the water.
The diver was out of the water by 3:33 p.m. and the truck was secured, according to dispatch reports.
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