A late-night rescue effort in Tinley Park ended in tragedy Tuesday morning, when crews recovered the body of a 30-year-old woman whose car left the road and plunged into a pond near Vollmer Road and Odyssey Boulevard. A bystander tried to reach the driver as the vehicle slipped under the surface, and rescue teams worked through the night to find the submerged car. Chopper crews and water-rescue units surrounded the pond as investigators secured the area. Officials have not yet said why the car veered off the roadway.
Tinley Park Manager Pat Carr told Patch the crash happened around 6:30 p.m. Monday near the entrance to the Odyssey subdivision and that there was one person in the vehicle when it went into the water. According to Carr, a bystander dove in and tried to reach the driver but the car sank too quickly, and water-rescue units along with a Chicago Police helicopter remained at the scene into the evening hours.
ABC7 Chicago reported that crews used a submersible to search the pond and that village officials confirmed the woman's body was recovered Tuesday morning. The outlet noted that strong storms had swept through the area earlier Monday, though authorities say the cause of the crash remains unclear.
Storms And Retention-Pond Hazards
Monday's severe weather slammed the region with damaging wind gusts, hail and flash-flood warnings, leaving more than 165,000 customers without power, according to NBC Chicago. Retention and roadside ponds that look calm from the curb can turn treacherous during storms, especially when visibility is low and water levels change quickly. Federal data show an average of about 4,000 unintentional drowning deaths per year nationwide, the CDC reports.
Investigation Continuing
Tinley Park officials say the investigation is ongoing and have not released additional details about the driver's identity or any potential contributing factors, ABC7 Chicago reports. Authorities have not provided a timeline for when more information might be released as they continue to process the scene and piece together what led up to the deadly plunge.
