MELBOURNE, Fla. — An 89-year-old Florida man was sucked into a hole under his car and drowned after his car struck a fire hydrant on his birthday, according to officials.
Florida Highway Patrol troopers told WFTV that after hitting the hydrant, Robert Dreyer stepped out of his car and was pulled under his Mercedes as the water from the broken fire hydrant gushed out.
“I haven’t seen anything like this before,” Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Channing Taylor told WFTV. “Usually hydrants will break off and they won’t spew any water. They have safety valves in place. But if you hit something the right way, the safety doesn’t work.”
Bystanders tried desperately to help Dreyer after he was sucked into the hole.
“We just see that water gushing out and it gets to the point that it’s hitting palm trees on the side of the road,” Pedro Rodriguez, who was working nearby, said. “And my boss yelled at us to bring the car down the road.”
He and other bystanders made their way to the hole where Dreyer was trapped and were able to eventually pull him out. Rodriguez told WFTV that he estimated Dreyer was in the hole for three or four minutes.
Dreyer was taken to a hospital where he died.
The crash remains under investigation.
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