1 teen dead 3 hospitalized after car crashes into pond

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - A 15-year-old girl has died and three other teens have been hospitalized, including a 16-year-old boy in critical condition, after a car crashed into an Indianapolis retention pond, authorities said.

Witnesses told firefighters they saw the car traveling at a high rate of speed Saturday evening on the city's southeast side when it left the road and hit a tree before becoming submerged in 12 feet of water.

The speed limit for a curve near the retention pond is 30 mph.

Indianapolis Fire Department divers said the car was located wheels down in about 12 feet of water 35 feet from the shore.

Battalion Chief Rita Reith said the 15-year-old girl who died and the 16-year-old boy taken to the hospital in critical condition were trapped in the back seat of the car after it went into the water.

The 17-year-old driver and a 16-year-old sitting in the front passenger seat were able to escape the vehicle on their own. Reith said they were both hospitalized in good condition.

An Indianapolis police officer arriving on the scene dove into the water and pulled the 15-year-old girl from the backseat of the car at 7:05 p.m. He swam back to the vehicle and pulled the 16-year-old boy from the car at 7:08 p.m, Reith said.

The police officer who entered the water told firefighters he was comfortable in the water because he was previously a collegiate swimmer.