Reader Submitted Photo
Crews trying to get to a vehicle that was under the water in the Housatonic River.
SEYMOUR — UPDATE: on Saturday evening police identified the victims as Monroe residents Connie Crowell, 54, and her son, John Crowell, 22.
Please click this link for updated information.
The incident remains under investigation and witnesses are being asked to call police at 203 881 7638.
ORIGINAL POST FOLLOWS
Two people died after their vehicle plunged into the Housatonic River off Roosevelt Drive Friday.
WTNH reported the deaths Friday evening.
One of the victims was a minor, according to radio transmissions. The Valley Indy emailed Seymour police department leaders at 6 p.m. seeking information. Update: On Saturday police said one of the victims was 22-year-old John Crowell. There were no underage victims. Click here for an updated story.
The vehicle had been submerged for some 45 minutes (as judged by the times called out during emergency radio transmissions), its occupants trapped within the vehicle while it was submerged in deep water and being carried by the current as rescue crews tried to free them.
Reader Submitted Photo
This image shows the wheels of the vehicle above the water line while the rest of the vehicle is submerged. The vehicle had been deeper in the water before being pulled toward the shore.
This story will be updated if more information is released.
Seymour fire, ambulance and police were sent to the area of 179 Roosevelt Drive (Route 34) at about 3:43 p.m. after receiving a report of a vehicle in the water with people trapped inside.
Photo by Jason Edwards For The Valley Indy
First responders converged on the river behind Riverview BBQ (a restaurant behind a small retail strip that includes a bakery, a pizzeria, and a package store).
According to emergency radio dispatchers, a Seymour police officer and two firefighters commandeered a person’s boat in order to reach the vehicle, which was upside down in the water.
Rescue crews were able to get a “tag” line attached to the vehicle, which was floating down river with the current, according to radio dispatches. The vehicle was then pulled toward the shore.
Photo by Jason Edwards for The Valley Indy
The first person was pulled from the submerged vehicle at about 4:32 p.m. The second victim was out as of about 4:36 p.m.
It was unclear how and where the vehicle entered the water. At about 6 p.m. police and firefighters were looking along Roosevelt Drive trying to determine where the vehicle entered the water. The CT Post reported the vehicle has been traveling on Roosevelt Drive/Route 34 when it crashed and ended in the water.
The scene was still active as of 5:15 p.m.
Reader Submitted Photo
Crews trying to get to a vehicle that was under the water in the Housatonic River.
Dive teams from Newtown, Middlebury and Milford were requested to the scene. A dive team from Shelton was not available.
A rescue boat from Derby Storm Ambulance & Rescue was called to the scene, along with rescue boats from Seymour. EMS and firefighters from Ansonia and Oxford responded to the scene as well.
This story will be updated when more information becomes available.
The scene off Roosevelt Drive.
