Driver Escapes Sinking Car in Otter Pond; Hanover Dive Team Assists Recovery

Hanover, NH - A driver escaped unharmed early Friday morning after their vehicle plunged into Otter Pond, prompting a regional recovery operation involving the Hanover Fire Department Dive Team to retrieve the car from 20 feet of water.

At approximately 5:30 a.m. on Friday, September 25, the Hanover Fire Department's specialized dive rescue team was requested on mutual aid by the Sunapee Fire Department following reports of a vehicle submerged off Route 11 in Otter Pond.

Before the car sank beneath the surface, the driver was able to self-extricate from the cabin and reach safety. Arriving responders confirmed the vehicle had come to rest on the pond bed approximately 20 feet below the surface.

Operating alongside Sunapee fire crews and commercial wreckers, Hanover divers entered the water to locate the submerged wreckage and rig heavy recovery rigging to the vehicle's frame. The underwater hookup allowed the recovery company to winch the car up from the pond floor and hoist it ashore, neutralizing potential fuel, oil, and fluid leaks to safeguard the local aquatic ecosystem.