Shelby County, IN - Last night at approximately 7:45 police received an emergency call that a vehicle on I-74 near the 114 mile marker had ran off the roadway near the Big Blue River bridge. The caller told emergency dispatchers the vehicle went into the median and down the embankment. A short time later police officers arrived, the vehicle was not visible from the road however the 911 caller had stopped to point them in the direction of the car.
Trooper Jonathan Haugh, Trooper Will Gannon and Shelby County Deputy Carlos Rosales located the vehicle nose down in waste deep water along the bank of the river. The driver was still inside and unresponsive with frigid water coming into the car. Without hesitation the three officers walked into the water, broke out a window and helped the driver to safety.
It believed the driver, Kenneth Hankins of Saint Paul Indiana, suffered a medical condition causing him to run off the roadway. When police got to him he was dissoriented and confused. Hankins was transported to Major Hospital for treatment. Trooper Haugh suffered a cut to his finger from broken glass and was also treated at Major Hospital.
Drivers are encouraged to call 911 to report emergnecies such as this. Without the willingness of an alert citizen to call police, the outcome of this incident could have been significantly different.
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Perrine
