A police officer and a Good Samaritan saved the life of a dump truck driver early this morning after he blew a tire and drove off of a bridge.
It happened in Rochester, Massachusetts at approximately 7 a.m. on the Hiller Street bridge.
According to 7 News Boston, the 73-year-old man was driving over the bridge when he hit a piece at the base, rupturing his tire and causing him to lose control of the vehicle.
The dump truck spun off the bridge and into the pond below, spilling diesel fuel and oil.
The rig began to sink as the driver struggled to escape from the destroyed cab. When the driver could not escape, the person from the car behind him, as well as a police officer that was called to the scene, climbed down into the water to assist him.
The dump truck driver got caught on the weather stripping from the door of the cab, and the pair of rescuers were unable to remove him from the sinking vehicle. The two remained, however, and held the trucker’s head above water while they waited for rescue crews to arrive.
It took crews 40 minutes to extract the driver from the wrecked dump truck. He was taken to a nearby hospital via airlift with critical injuries.
“It was definitely the difference between him surviving and not surviving –them being able to keep his head above water,” Rochester Fire Chief Scott Weigel said.
Rochester fire chief crediting two men for helping to save the life of this truck driver. Held his head above water. pic.twitter.com/qhddRDIBim
— Kim Lucey (@KimLucey) June 22, 2017
Crews spent the day cleaning up the spill.
Rochester officer Nathan Valente says he just did what any other member of the force would have done.
The Good Samaritan did not wish to be identified, but said that he felt as if he was “doing the right thing.”
Updates on the current condition of the dump truck driver have not been provided.