Driver stranded after water main break

A driver was stranded after trying to motor through a suddenly formed pond in the roadway caused by a water main break Monday morning in Head of the Harbor, a fire official said.

Water covered Evan Court and Hitherbrook Road for about 70 feet in one direction and 30 feet in the other, when the woman, whose name was not released, started to go through at 5:40 a.m., said Liam Carroll, third assistant chief at the St. James fire department.

"It was in the middle of the street, and she drove into a huge puddle that was actually like a pond," said Carroll, who was at the scene. "She thought she could make it through, and she had the car submerged in about four feet of water."

Two firefighters got her out of the car, and she was examined at the scene by emergency medical technicians before being released, the fire official said.

About 25 firefighters responded to the call, Carroll said.

Details on what caused the water main break were not immediately available Monday night, but the fire chief said the water has been pumped out by the village highway department.

"It could have been the cold weather," Carroll said of the water main break. "Sometimes when it freezes and starts to thaw out, there could be a crack in the pipe."