Officials rescue car full of gifts after woman, three children roll off highway into water filled ditch

By Averi Kremposky

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    VOLUSIA COUNTY, Florida (WESH) — The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office saved Christmas for a group of children on Monday.

According to VCSO, deputies responded to a vehicle crash on southbound Interstate 95 around 11:45 a.m. Deputies say a car — occupied by a woman and three small children — went off the highway, struck a pole and rolled into a ditch with about three feet of water.

Officials say the oldest child in the car was about 5 years old.

The occupants only suffered minor injuries and were assisted out of the vehicle by bystanders, but all of the children’s Christmas gifts were in the vehicle, VCSO said.

After the victims were transferred to an ambulance, officials used a ladder to access the submerged vehicle. VCSO said a human chain was formed, which allowed firefighters to pass the gifts to deputies and dry land.

In the body cam video WESH obtained, you could hear firefighters say the water was up to the seat of the car.

Then, VCSO said deputies transported the gifts to the office, sorted and dried them and then supplemented the collection with a few extra donated gifts. The gifts were then transported to the hospital for the children.

“Everyone’s OK and Christmas is saved!” VCSO wrote on Facebook.

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