BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – A driver lost control of their vehicle and crashed into a canal off Alligator Alley late Tuesday afternoon.
The accident killed two people and injured three others, including two children.
It happened near mile marker 29 of I-75 in Broward County.
According to authorities, five people were initially treated for injuries. They included three adult women between the ages of 20 and 30, and two children between two and three years old.
According to Florida Highway Patrol, good Samaritans jumped into action and pulled the victims out of the car after it plunged into the water.
One of those good Samaritans was Charles Chang. He was driving to Estero when he saw a car ahead of him blow a tire and travel off the road into the canal.
“Save somebody’s life, that’s the only thing that’s important,” said Chang. “They were screaming for help and I just jumped in.”
Chang and other drivers who stopped to help saw the car was sinking quickly.
“They were sitting outside the windows but the car was going under so fast that by the time I jumped in, I was able to swim out to grab the first lady and the child, and at that point the car had gone under,” said Chang.
Another man jumped in the water and got the second child out safely, but two women were still trapped inside.
By the time those women were pulled out of the water, both were in cardiac arrest. One was rushed to Broward Health Medical Center and the other was brought to Cleveland Clinic, according to Broward Sheriff’s Office Fire Rescue.
Sadly both women have since been pronounced dead, authorities said.
The two children suffered non-life-threatening injuries and are expected to be OK, officials said.
The third adult suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is also expected to be OK.
All three surviving victims are being treated at local area hospitals.
A female deputy suffered a knee injury and was treated on scene, authorities said.
The cause of the car traveling into the canal is under investigation.