MIAMI LAKES, Fla. – Authorities are investigating after an SUV went into a canal in Miami Lakes Thursday morning.
It happened along Northwest 67th Avenue, just south of Loch Ness Drive.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crews were called out to the scene just after 10:35 a.m., according to dispatch data.
Witnesses said the driver, Karla Flowers, used a rain-soaked embankment for a U-turn and her Toyota 4Runner slid into the water.
Steven Monroy said he was walking his dog and his son noticed the woman was in trouble.
“I took off my hat & flip-flops jumped in the water and swam across to her,” Monroy said. “There were people on the shore and they were telling me to get her out because the car was sinking further into the canal.”
The car first sank in slow motion, neighbors said, but it progressively went down faster and faster
“She held onto the steering wheel, didn’t want to let go, so a bit of coaxing got her out onto the shore and then rescue showed up,” Monroy said.
Medics took Flowers, who isn’t from the area, to the hospital.
A tow truck fished the SUV out of the water, a cross and holy water standing from the rearview mirror.
And one more bit of karma: Flowers and Monroy share the same birthday — July 1.