Teen Rescued After Car Flies Through The Air Into Lake Pontchartrain

A Louisiana teenager was rescued Thursday evening (March 4) after his car ended up in Lake Pontchartrain while he was still inside.

According to WWL-TV, the 18-year-old driver, later identified as Brendan Dumas, was driving near the intersection of Franklin Avenue and Lakeshore Drive around 7 p.m. when he lost control of his 2008 Buick Lucerne. A nearby Orleans Levee District Police officer saw the vehicle driving at a high rate of speed through the intersection before hitting a concrete barrier, sending the car airborne into the lake.

Surprised but with a job to do, the officer quickly went to work to save the driver.

"The officer grabbed his flotation device and threw it to the victim who was pulled ashore by the officer and another witness nearby," the Flood Protection Authority said in a statement.

After being rescued, Dumas told officers that his brake light came on as he neared the intersection and that the malfunction caused him to lose control of the car. Dumas was treated by paramedics at the scene before being transferred to a local hospital for further examination, WWL-TV reports. Following the accident, he was given a ticket for careless operation.

As of Friday afternoon, the vehicle was still submerged in Lake Pontchartrain.

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