Diver recovering after two vehicles were removed from the Saginaw River
By Terry Camp
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BAY CITY, Michigan (WJRT) — A diver trying to remove a couple of vehicles from the Saginaw River on Tuesday suffered a medical emergency.
The man and several other emergency responders were in the process of removing two vehicles from the water.
The vehicles were a Lexus and a newer Ford pick-up truck. Investigators are trying to determine who last owned them.
The diver continues to recover from quite a scare on the river.
“It was great news today to get a text from him,” says Bay County Sheriff Troy Cunningham.
He got that text from Don Middleton, a Marine Division Sergeant and Essexville Fire Chief.
It was Middleton who suffered an apparent heart attack while he and other divers and first responders were in the process of recovering a vehicle from the river.
He was given CPR. An automated external defibrillator (AED) was also used on Middleton before he was rushed to the hospital.
“It truly was a Godsend to have those people right there,” says Cunningham.
While Middleton continues to recover, the mystery of what the two vehicles were doing in the river continues.
“It’s very odd for us to locate two that are that close to each other,” he says.
The first vehicle brought to the surface at the Cass Avenue boat launch was a mussel-covered white Lexus.
It’s not clear what year it is at this point, but Cunningham believes it’s been in the river longer than the second vehicle recovered, a 2018 Ford F-150 pick-up truck. There were no human remains in either vehicle.
“Our questions are if it was used in a crime or a stolen vehicle, or what took place,” says Cunningham.
“It’s just weird, you know,” says Dave Bowman, who was at the boat launch several hours after the vehicles were recovered. “I don’t even know why someone would want to do it. Look at what the stuff costs nowadays.”
Investigators say at this point, neither was reported to have been stolen and will now work with the Secretary of State’s office to determine who were the last known owner or owners.
“They didn’t look like they were old beater cars,” says Cunnigham. “The Ford F-150 was in pretty good shape.”
The sheriff’s department became aware of those vehicles in the river after a fisherman discovered them on Monday when his boat’s fish finder hit them.
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