Warrenville cops honored for lifesaving effort
By the time Detective Jeff Downey arrived at the spot where a car veered off I-88 and plunged into a Warrenville pond, the situation already was becoming dire.
The 31-year-old Wheaton man behind the wheel of the Nissan Altima was struggling to free himself as the front of the car was sinking.
What happened over the next several minutes on that Sept. 23 morning is the reason Downey and four of his Warrenville Police Department colleagues will be honored during Monday night’s city council meeting. The officers worked together to rescue the driver, who has since been released from the hospital.
“We’re extremely proud of the work these officers did on that call,” Deputy Chief Dave Schar said Friday.
The crash happened shortly before 11 a.m. when the Nissan, which was traveling west on I-88, abruptly veered across three lanes.
After leaving the tollway, the car went down an embankment, into a drainage ditch, through a fence and into the pond, authorities said.
Downey said he arrived to find bystanders Charles Remley and Kristin Souppa trying to help the man trapped in the sinking car. Souppa was swimming toward the vehicle.
After swimming to the car himself, Downey felt the driver “fighting to free himself.”
“The trunk of the vehicle was the only part not completely submerged,” Downey wrote in his report.
Two other Warrenville officers — Matt Dolmyer and Brian Roake — tried to help Downey pull the motorist through the driver’s side door or window. Downey used a duty knife he got from Roake to cut the seat belt in three places, but they were unable to free the man.
Even with the added help of two other colleagues — Detective Mark Leonard and officer Tom Bellinger — the rescuers couldn’t completely clear the driver from his seat.
“Finally, I was able to force open the sunroof of the vehicle,” Downey wrote. “This enabled us to extract the now unconscious driver completely from the vehicle through the sunroof and swim him to shore.”
Downey said he estimates the driver was underwater about five minutes. The Warrenville Fire Department rushed the man to Edward Hospital.
“We’re happy the gentleman is doing well,” Schar said. “It’s nice when you can be close to the right place at the right time and actually have a positive impact.”
All the officers will be recognized during a 7 p.m. meeting at city hall, 28W701 Stafford Place. Downey will receive a Medal of Valor, which is the department’s highest honor. Dolmyer, Roake, Leonard and Bellinger each will get a Lifesaving Award.