April 28--A 77-year-old motorist who was taken to a hospital after his vehicle went into a retention pond Monday afternoon in Elmhurst is still in critical intensive care, said Elmhurst spokesman Dan Leahy.
The man's vehicle plunged into the lagoon at 1:36 p.m. April 27 at Eldridge Park, 363 Commonwealth Lane.
He was transported to Elmhurst Memorial Hospital where he was in critical intensive care, Leahy said.
He was unconscious when he was pulled from a 2002 Toyota Camry.
The car was driven from the parking lot, over the curb, and into a pond beyond the parking area, police said.
"I'm not sure if he was in motion (when the car went over the curb) or was parked. Police are still trying to piece that together," Leahy said.
A witness told police he saw a man, who had been parked in a lot overlooking the water, drive into the lagoon, said Elmhurst Deputy Police Chief Bill Anazsewicz.
The vehicle, with a lone driver, was "partially submerged," said Leahy.
Leahy said witnesses reported the driver calling for help as the vehicle quickly filled with water.
He said police officers from Elmhurst and Oak Brook Terrace jumped into the water and swam about 90 feet and dove under the water to retrieve the driver who was trapped inside the car and was unconscious.
After several attempts to locate the driver inside the car, he was pulled above the water to safety.
Anazsewicz said the man was not conscious and had been under water for about 10 minutes.
The police officers who rescued the driver were treated and released from Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, Leahy said.
People who live in the nearby residential neighborhood gathered on the banks of the lagoon to watch as rescue personnel removed the man from the water.
Police are investigating how the incident happened.
