Baltimore City fire crews rushed to the intersection of South Monroe Street and Annapolis Road in Westport on Monday after reports of a possible vehicle in the water. What followed was a tense water-rescue operation that ended with a search of the submerged car — and no one found inside.
Emergency crews initiated the water-rescue operation after being called for the possible vehicle in the water, according to WBAL-TV. Dive team members searched the vehicle once crews arrived on scene, and determined it was unoccupied. The incident was then placed under control, and operating units cleared the scene and returned to service, per the same report.
A Familiar Stretch of Water for Baltimore Rescue Crews
This is not the first time this particular patch of Westport waterway has drawn emergency crews. Back on September 5, 2022, a vehicle that appeared to be an SUV was found submerged in the Gwynns Falls near the same intersection of Annapolis Road and South Monroe Street, roughly 50 feet from land, according to CBS Baltimore.
In that 2022 incident, a scuba team along with the Baltimore City Fire Department's Special Operations Command carried out a rescue operation, but ultimately found nobody inside the car, CBS Baltimore reported at the time.
Not Every Water Rescue Ends the Same Way
Submerged-vehicle calls don't always turn out as they did in Westport. On July 20, 2018, rescue units including dive teams pulled one person from the water near the first boat ramp at Liberty Reservoir after a vehicle was discovered there, according to The Baltimore Sun. In that case, a dive team searched for any additional victims but didn't find anyone else in the vehicle, the paper reported.
Monday's response in Westport ended without that kind of outcome — the car was empty, and crews were able to clear the scene and move on. Still, the history of vehicles turning up in the water near South Monroe Street and Annapolis Road underscores why Baltimore fire crews treat every one of these calls with the same urgency, launching full water-rescue operations before they know what, or who, they'll find.
