Woman pulled from sinking car by quick-thinking bystanders

INDIAN HARBOUR BEACH, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - A driver who was trapped inside a sinking car was pulled to safety, but it could have ended tragically had it not been for an employee at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, Florida.

That employee just happened to be on a break from work, when he saw this Toyota Camry with a 61-year-old woman inside go into a canal.  Police say the car started floating away, as it also began to sink.

"From what I understand, the current did take the vehicle into the middle of the canal, and could have sank very quickly, and that woman could have died," explained Indian Harbour Beach Police Cmdr. Ralph Garcia.

The victim said she thought she was going to die. She banged on the window but couldn't break it, and as water filled to the top, she said she asked aloud for God to care for her only adult son.  At that same moment, yacht club workers jumped into the water, and on top of her car.

They smashed a window with a tire iron.  The victim, a local hospital nurse, was pulled from the car and helped to shore by arriving officers.

The staff at the yacht club will be recognized for their heroism at an upcoming city meeting, Cmdr. Garcia added.