SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, Calif. — A woman and her five-year-old daughter taken to a hospital after crashing a car into the San Joaquin River in Vernalis Tuesday afternoon, according to the South San Joaquin Fire Authority.
For unknown reasons, the woman's GMC sports utility vehicle rolled over from the Airport Way overcrossing, going down the embankment, hitting a tree and going into the river around 1:30 p.m.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the driver and her child got out of the GMC and stood near the rear hatch as it began to sink.
Fire officials said bystanders rescued the child from the woman's arms before she went under the water. The woman was rescued from the water by a bystander who did not resurface once the woman was on the shore.
Police said it's not clear if the witness drowned or if he walked away from the scene.
The woman was "revived" by medical officials and taken to the hospital with the child, according to fire officials. Police said she had major injuries from the incident and the five-year-old girl had no injuries.
Officials from multiple agencies searched for the remaining bystander but were unable to find them after multiple hours of searching in the water. Airport Way is reopened to through traffic, but law enforcement officers will remain in the area to investigate.
No further information is available at this time.
