Maryland officials are crediting a man for saving a 2-year-old’s life, after a crash that left a truck teetering off the edge of the Route 90 bridge near Ocean City on Sunday afternoon.
Worcester County 911 dispatchers received word of a crash around 2:30 p.m. Sunday. First responders found a pickup truck perched halfway over the guardrail, and were told that a child had been ejected from its cabin and plunged at least 20 feet into the waters of Assawoman Bay.
That’s when officials say a bystander leapt to the rescue.
“A good Samaritan, at the right place at the right time, jumped into the bay to save the baby out of the water,” said Ryan Whittington, a spokesman for the Ocean City Fire Department. “A pontoon boat in the area stopped and picked them up, and took them to meet our paramedics.”
Ocean City police said Monday that eight people were sent to the hospital in the collision, including the child, who was ejected from the vehicle with her car seat.
Firefighters worked to secure the vehicle with rescue tools while paramedics treated those injured. The infant was flown to Johns Hopkins Children’s Hospital by medevac helicopter, and was in what police called “stable” condition Monday.
“The good Samaritan is doing well, I did have the opportunity to speak with him yesterday,” said Whittington. “I know that our fire chief is going to make contact with him, just thanking him for everything he did without due regard for his own personal safety, actually jumping into the water and saving a child.”
For now, that man has asked to remain anonymous.
Md. Route 90 was closed between Coastal Highway and Race Track Road until about 9 p.m. Sunday.
Ocean City police continue to investigate the cause of the crash. And on Monday, they said the incident appeared to involve multiple crashes.
The video below from WBOC shows the accident seen from a helicopter.
WBOC-TV 16, Delmarvas News Leader, FOX 21 –
The video below posted on Delmarva Now shows the rescue of the baby from the vantage point of a boater in Assawoman Bay.
WTOP’s Colleen Kelleher contributed to this story.