Driver rescued from icy Massachusetts pond

WINCHENDON, Mass. (FOX 13) - A Massachusetts driver was rescued after veering off the road and into an icy pond.

Just after 4 a.m. Sunday, a witness in Winchendon was plowing a church parking lot on Front Street and saw a vehicle drive into Hunts Pond.

According to the Winchendon Fire Department, the witness dialed 911, reporting the vehicle and the driver were still in the water. The fire agency shared scene photos on its Facebook page, showing the red vehicle floating in the pond, surrounded by blocks of ice, while officials were bundled up in winter clothing and assessing the situation from a snowy bank. 

Winchendon police arrived and requested a dive team to respond to the scene. That’s when the driver self-extricated himself from the car and sat on the roof of the car, which was about ten feet from shore, and starting to sink into an estimated ten feet of water. 

As police and fire officials were waiting for the proper equipment to arrive, but realized they were running out of time.

Instead, they threw a rope to the driver advising him to tie it around himself. The officials on scene managed to pull the man safely to shore.

The driver was not injured and the scene was cleared by 6 a.m. The cause of the crash has not been disclosed.