Mich. Police Officer Saves Driver from SUV Sinking in Retention Pond

A Clinton Township police officer is being called a hero for saving the driver of an SUV that ended up in a retention pond last week.

Police were called at about 1:50 a.m. on Dec. 31 to the Harbors Apartment Complex on Bayview Avenue near Hall and Elizabeth roads in Clinton Township for a report of a vehicle in a pond, officials said Wednesday. The caller told authorities at least one person was in the vehicle.

Officers arrived and found a dark-colored SUV floating in the middle of the water, according to authorities. They also saw a man in the vehicle's driver's seat.

Investigators said they instructed the river to exit the vehicle after its front end started to sink, but he wouldn't comply.

A police sergeant jumped into the water and swam to the vehicle, according to authorities. He saw the driver moving around inside but he would not come to the open driver's side window, officials said. The sergeant yelled to the man to exit but he didn't respond.

They said the vehicle sank and the officer reached inside and pulled the driver out. He was able to stabilize the driver on a lifejacket while holding on to a rope his fellow officers would later use to pull them out of the water, police reported.

Authorities said as soon as the sergeant had pulled the driver out, the SUV sank to the pond's bottom.

"We are extremely proud of the actions taken by all officers of Platoon C, but without the heroic actions of (the sergeant), the driver may have suffered a fatal outcome," the department said in a statement. "Job Well Done!!"

_________

©2025 The Detroit News.

Visit detroitnews.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.