Deputies Save Two Women from Submerged SUV in Freezing Creek

On February 22, ACSO dispatchers received a 911 call in which the caller repeatedly said “please” but would not respond to questions. The emergency Rapid SOS system showed there had been a crash, and the caller was somewhere on S. Lima St. between E. Easter Ave. and E. Arapahoe Rd. in Centennial.

While deputies were checking the area with flashlights, a man flagged them down and showed them where he believed the crash might have occurred. The witness said he saw a black SUV pass him at a high rate of speed and fly off the road into a ditch. Deputies searched the creek bed, but it was challenging to find the vehicle due to the deep snow, rocks, and heavy vegetation. They finally spotted tire tracks, followed a debris trail, and eventually located the vehicle upside down, submerged in the creek.

Deputies waded through the water, sometimes chest-deep, while breaking ice to reach the vehicle in 22-degree weather. When they finally reached it, they could hear someone inside screaming and crying and responding to their calls. They were able to force open a rear door and pull one female out, helping rescue crews get her up the steep embankment. A second female in the car had to be extricated with the Jaws of Life.