What to do if you’re inside a sinking car

Stacy Smuck’s car went into a Rigby canal Wednesday but he was rescued by Sam Morris, a passerby who saw the accident. So what do you do if you’re stuck in a sinking car and don’t have someone to help you on the outside?

“If you’re in a vehicle that gets in the water and it’s submerged or partially submerged, you may have a very very small amount of time to get out. First thing would be to not panic and look for your exits,” said Bonneville County Sergent Bryan Lovell.

To get out you may need to move to a different area of the car. Stay calm, unfasten seat belts, and unlock doors.

“You’ve got one window sticking out in the air, that’s probably the easiest window to try to get shattered or roll down and make your way out of the car instead of being submerged and trying to figure out which way to go,” said Lovell.

Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office released this statement:

“According to the National Highway Transportation Administration, approximately 400 people die each year in the U.S. from drowning in their vehicles. Most of these drownings occur because the people in the cars are unconscious after impact or are unable to escape the vehicle due to panic. You can escape a sinking vehicle but you have to be quick. Dr. Gordon Geisbrecht from the University of Manitoba says. Dr. Geisbrecht specializes in cold water submersion rescues and teaches law enforcement and others on underwater vehicle escape. Speed is your ally as Dr. Geisbrecht says you only have about a minute to get out. He recommends that you follow his Seat belt, Children, Window, out or SCWO protocol.

Don’t panic and don’t call 911 until you get out of the car. Unbuckle your seat belt and then take care of getting any children unbuckled. Unbuckle the oldest child first so they can help with the younger ones. Next roll down the window, if you can’t roll it down, break the window. This will let water in but you will still have close to 60 seconds before the car fills and sinks. Look into purchasing a specialized tool for breaking vehicle windows and storing it in your car. Now get out. Water will be rushing in but it has been proven that people can still get out. Send the children first. Oldest children should go first then take out the youngest in your arms if you must.”

If you’re unable to roll down the windows, break them with your elbow, shoe heels, or anything pointy.

“You’re going to want to break it. Kick it out, find something to break it, or have some sort of tool you can get to easily in your car,” said Lovell.

In the event you can’t get any window to budge, the pressures inside and outside of the car will equalize. Hold your breath, keep calm, and try to open the door after the car is submerged for a few seconds. It may be a challenge, but you should be able open the door and swim out to safety.

You can easily buy a tool that has a point to break a window and a seat belt cutter at a hardware store or on amazon.com.