Police in Hartville, Ohio, are praising an officer who recently saved a woman from inside her sinking vehicle.
Authorities said Officer Ken Hanket was driving early Sunday along Sunnyside Street when he watched a car move left of center and over an embankment, crashing into a retention pond, WJW reported.
The department shared dashcam footage showing the white vehicle in the distance at the moment it went over the embankment.
As the officer sped over, the roof of the white car was seen in the water:
“Officer Hanket was there within 5 seconds of the vehicle and driver entering the water and he was in the water next to the driver before she knew what had happened,” the post read.
Hanket notified EMS and kept the driver calm while calling additional resources. He eventually convinced the driver to go with him back to shore.
The department’s post continued:
They walked slowly together, in the very cold and slippery, nearly waist deep water, to the awaiting ambulance. I always talk about our ‘average response time’ but watch the (partial) cruiser video, you too will see the splash. His response time was instant! Well done Ken! As often happens, Ken did not start out his day planning to do something heroic, but he did not hesitate when heroics were needed.
Honestly, he did not pause long enough to assess whether the vehicle was stable or could sink further, he did not know or think about the depth of the water, he saw a driver in distress and he acted, as we expect him to do. Never-the-less, his actions significantly reduced her danger and significantly increased his, clearly a heroic act!
In a social media post on Tuesday, authorities described Hanket as a “humble man who truly doesn’t seek the spotlight,” and noted, “Hopefully he will eventually forgive me for calling attention to the great job that he did. GOD Bless.”
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