Crime & Safety

Woman Injured When She Crashed Car into Water Near VFW Parkway

A woman crashed into a BP gas pump, before taking off and speeding into the Charles River, witnesses say.

Emergency crews transported an unidentified woman to the hospital Thursday afternoon after she lost control of her car and sped into the Charles River, Dedham police said.

The accident happened at the BP gas station on Bridge Street near VFW Parkway.

Two BP employees rushed after the woman, guessed to be in her 60s, and helped her out of the sinking silver Ford Focus.

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Jeff Knox, of Norwood, rushed to the water and said the woman was concious with bad cuts on her face. Her injuries were not considered life threatening, according to Dedham police officer Keith Kennedy.

"She basically lost control," Kennedy said at the scene. The police will follow-up with the woman at the hospital to identify her and collect her statement on the accident.

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Knox and co-worker Justin Kenney helped the woman out of her car and she frantically tried to open the door and roll the windows down, Knox said.

It took crews several attempts to pull the Focus out of the river and onto the bed of a tow truck. Knox said the woman told him the car was a rental. Emergency crews had to smash windows and pull the bumper off in order to get the car out of the Charles.

The woman arrived at BP shortly before the accident and tried to pump gas. But, she was confused as to what side her gas tank on and made a few attempts to get her car on the correct side of the pump, according to Knox. That is when she told Knox that it was a rental, said Knox.

The woman then attempted to back her car up, but hit the gas too hard and smashed into one of the pumps, forcing it sideways. She then sped off, and with Bridge Street to her left, she made a right down the hill of the Olde Irish Alehouse parking lot. She hit the curb and went into the water, witnesses say.

BP employees estimated the cost of replacing the pump to be "in the thousands," not to mention the loss in sales.


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