Two veteran police officers have been recommended for commendation for their rescue Monday of a man whose car ran into a retention pond and sank, trapping the motorist inside.
Officers Jack Senyshyn, with 17 years of service, and John Saurmann, with 8 years, said neither of them had ever done anything like that before.
Senyshyn was the first on the scene, at a golf course along U.S. Highway 14 near Quentin Road. He dove underwater twice, once to assess the situation and then to remove the victim.
”I didn`t expect the poor visibility or the shoulder belt strap,” both of which hampered the rescue, he said.
When Senyshyn came up for air, Saurmann was on the scene and held onto Senyshyn during his second dive.
”My concern was, he could be trapped if the car sank even further,”
Saurmann said. At the time of the rescue, the 1990 Ford Escort was resting in about 8 feet of water. The lake is as much as 12 feet deep in the center.
The victim, Thomas Gable of Palatine, was listed in fair condition Wednesday in Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.