In the early hours of Thursday, February 13th, a jeep wrangler drove off Neunert Road outside of Gorham, close to Jackson County, Illinois. The accident happened at about 4:45 a.m.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call from witnesses. The driver of the jeep, whom officials later identified as Benjamin Vodel, 28, of Murphysboro, was trapped in the vehicle.

He was in the driver’s compartment of the car, which got submerged in water. When police deputies and first responders got to him, Vodel was unresponsive and had minor injuries.

The young man then got transported to a hospital in the St. Louis area for treatment with the Jackson County Ambulance Services. The Gorham and Ava Fire Departments also helped.

The sheriff’s office is carrying out investigations into what caused Vodel’s accident. In the meantime, the crash has been declared a single-person accident with no other victim than the driver.

In the United States, more than 11, 000 accidents occur each year with cars getting submerged. Out of that number, about 300 people die for reasons that they could have easily avoided.

When submerged in a car, the first thing to do is stay calm, and don’t go into a panic attack. Next, evaluate the situation to see the depth of the water, and how fast it is filling up the car if the windows are locked.

If the vehicle is fully submerged, leave the seat belt during the evaluation, and only take it off when there’s an escape plan. Also, take into account pressure equalization, and use only the most logical means of escape, which can be either the door or the window.

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