Two women were killed early March 6 when their vehicle crashed into Lake Erie in Lorain.
At 4:17 a.m., Lorain police officers responded to reports of a downed utility pole lying in the roadway near the intersection on West Erie Avenue near Oak Point Road, according to a news release from Lorain Police Department Capt. Jacob Morris.
Officers arrived and saw that a utility pole had been struck and knocked down.
A crew preparing to replace a utility pole at Beaver Park Marina in Lorain where a vehicle crashed and ended up in Lake Erie where the female occupants died. (Journal staff – The Morning Journal)
At the same time, dispatchers received additional calls regarding an 18-year-old man believed to have entered a nearby residence without permission.
Officers approached the man and saw injuries that appeared consistent with those normally suffered in a motor vehicle crash, according to the release.
The man, who’s identity is being withheld, told officers he was sitting in the back seat of a vehicle, a late-model black sedan driven by a female acquaintance with another woman seated in the front passenger seat, when it struck at least one utility pole before leaving the roadway and entering Lake Erie near Beaver Park Marina.
A broken utility pole in Lake Erie near Beaver Park Marina. Two women were killed early March 6 when their vehicle crashed into a tributary leading to Lake Erie in Lorain. (Journal staff – The Morning Journal)
The man told officers that he was able to escape the vehicle through a back seat window, but indicated he had not seen the two women since the crash and did not know whether they were able to exit the car.
The man was transported to Mercy Health — Lorain Hospital for treatment of injuries he suffered during the crash.
His current medical status is unknown.
At this time, he has not been charged with any criminal offenses.
The Lorain Police Department Traffic Investigation Unit responded to investigate the crash, while the Lorain Police Underwater Recovery Team began searching Lake Erie for the vehicle and any occupants.
Shortly after 8 a.m., members of the Lorain Police Underwater Recovery Team located the vehicle in Lake Erie.
During the recovery operation, one deceased woman was located inside the vehicle.
A short time later, a second deceased woman was found.
The identities of both women are being withheld pending notification of their next of kin, according to the release.
The incident remains under active investigation as officers and investigators continue working to determine the circumstances surrounding the crash and why the vehicle left the roadway, the release said.