Boy, 16, dies after SUV plunges into Don River
Posted March 29, 2013 6:21 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A 16-year-old boy has died after he was trapped in an SUV that plunged into the frigid waters of the Don River on Friday.
Four other occupants, two boys and two girls, managed to escape the sinking vehicle and suffered only minor injuries.
The deceased boy was a passenger, and police say he was trapped underwater in the SUV for around half an hour after it crashed around 5:30 p.m.
Emergency crews were on scene within minutes and Toronto police and firefighters, some in T-shirts and regulation uniforms, dove into the numbing Don in a desperate attempt to rescue him. Eventually a fully-suited dive team arrived and managed to get the boy out of the SUV and into a waiting ambulance.
He died later at hospital, police confirmed just before 11 p.m.
Two firefighters were treated for hypothermia, Toronto Fire confirms.
Police say the vehicle was travelling eastbound on Lake Shore Boulevard East at the Don Roadway when it lost control. It crossed three lanes, crashing through a guardrail and handrail before ending up in the river.
Police tell CityNews they have ruled out alcohol as a factor. An investigation is underway and speed and inexperience are being looked at as possible factors.
A man who was feeding geese in the area says he witnessed the ordeal and helped some of the people to shore.
“I heard a car going out of control. It spun around…and it crashed through the guardrails,” said Kurt, who didn’t give his last name. “They have safety ropes along the Don, and I was able to grab the rope in time and throw them the rope and I was able to pull them in.”
Other witnesses say the teens who escaped became frantic when they realized their friend was still submerged.
The deceased boy’s identity has not been released.
