Oneida Valley Reservoir searched after SUV plunges in
OAKLAND TWP — State police arrested the alleged driver of an SUV that plunged into Oneida Valley Reservoir around 4 a.m. Thursday.
Police searched for the driver most of Thursday and confirmed his arrest around 5 p.m. The driver has yet to be identified, but police said he was arrested for an active warrant, as well as new charges related to the crash.
Police, firefighters and members of Butler County Water Rescue Team 300 spent about six hours investigating and searching the area around a crashed SUV that was found mostly submerged in the water.
Oneida Valley Fire Chief Gary Wulff said his crew was one of the first to arrive on the scene. He said the vehicle had damage all over, indicating it might have been rolling over before it went into the water.
“You could see the back bumper and the back hatch upside down in the water,” he said.
Wulff said crews entered the water because there wasn’t evidence that the driver exited the vehicle.
“The ground was dry, so it didn’t look like anybody had left the (vehicle),” he said.
Divers entered the water and used equipment to tear open the driver’s side door, and when they found no one inside, they rotated around the vehicle to the passenger-side door, which was open.
“They proceeded to search the shoreline and out in the general area,” said Mark Adomaitis, chief of Team 300.
Adomaitis said the water team and divers deployed sonar equipment over the sides of the boats, which revealed a view of the bottom. He said this helps them find debris and sometimes the bodies of drowning victims, which typically sink in colder water.
Adomaitis said the sweeps produced a couple of hits with one in particular providing some results.
“Here it was more of his clothing,“ he said. “At least that’s all it was.“
Authorities called off a search of the water and land surrounding the SUV, which was heavily damaged. No one was located in the search.
Despite some scattered showers, the searchers avoided major rainfall. Adomaitis said a heavier rain did arrive as water rescue team members were loading their boats onto trailers on the east side of the reservoir.
“On the other side of the reservoir, it’s not really a boat launch, it’s a muddy access point,” he said. “Luckily we were able to get the boats up and out of there.“
Adomaitis said he was glad the driver was found, though frustrated he did not alert authorities that he was not in the water. Adomaitis said hypothermia was a real concern, despite warmer temperatures.
“It’s warmer out here, but that water is still very cold,” he said.
Adomaitis applauded all involved in Thursday’s search, both in the water and on land.
“We didn’t really have any issues,“ he said. ”Everything went as smooth as could be.”
Firefighters and other authorities searched a wooded hillside to the west of the road, across from where the SUV was found. Around 7:20 a.m., the vehicle was lifted out of the water and towed from the scene.
Oneida Valley Road, between its intersection with Hoon and Hohn roads, closed to all traffic for about four hours following the vehicle’s discovery.
Around 8 a.m., traffic resumed but was restricted to one lane for about a mile. Firefighters assisted with directing traffic for more than two hours until the search ceased.
Also assisting at the scene were firefighters from Unionville and EMTs from East Butler Ambulance.
Eagle staff photographer Sebastian Foltz contributed to this report.
