A driver in Glendale, Arizona, is lucky that someone who knew how to handle an emergency dip into a water hazard was in the right place at the right time earlier in June. The 66-year-old woman found her car suddenly sinking into a local lake, after she was forced to make an evasive maneuver off the road when a reckless driver got in the way.
A woman driving nearby on June 13th, when the other woman's car plunged into the lake, acted as a Good Samaritan, and came to her rescue. She says she used to be a lifeguard, so knew what to do.
A local news report gives details on how it happened:
On June 13, a driver swerved to avoid a crash at the intersection of 59th Avenue and Behrend Drive. The evasive maneuvers ended with their car crashing into a nearby man-made lake.
...
[Amy] Magsamen was driving in the area at the time and when she stopped to help, she saw she had to act quickly.
She spoke to the Glendale Police in a new clip, which includes government camera video of the woman's brave rescue. Magsamen explains:
I had that lifeguard training. I know you don't dive into water that's unknown.
Despite that fear, time was of the essence, so she didn't hesitate to act:
The scary part was, the car was going down. It was sinking.
Watch:
Last Thursday's commute in Glendale took an unexpected turn when a reckless driver caused chaos on the road. One car even ended up in a lake after swerving to avoid a collision! A brave citizen stepped up and jumped into action to save the day. #GlendaleHeroes #GlendaleAZPD pic.twitter.com/uDs76wsiq2
— Glendale Police (@GlendaleAZPD) June 20, 2024
She also has good advice for anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation:
Keep your eyes on the victim, try to get her to stay calm. If she doesn't here's what I'm gonna do. If the car goes down here's what I'm gonna do. So it seemed logical.
With all of the negative news in the world and signs of bad behavior all around us every day, it's uplifting to find and share these kinds of stories sometimes. We need more people to realize the good in others, even if they're someone they have never met before. You never know -- someday, they could save your life.
Editor's Note: This article was edited to correct an error after publication. We incorrectly identified the driver as a man. The driver was a woman.We regret the error.
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