Car pulled from pond, driver sought

Source: Footsteps, vomit spotted near pond where car found

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Authorities are searching for a person or persons involved in a crash that left a car submerged in a retention pond early Thursday morning.

Just after 2:30 a.m. troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol were dispatched to a retention pond near the Calhoun Center, located at 1300 Duval Street in St. Augustine, in reference to a hit-and-run.

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When troopers arrived, they found a1996 Chevy Impala in the retention pond.

"For whatever reason the driver, at this time unknown, lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle veered onto the south shoulder of the roadway, crashed into the fence surrounding this retention pond," said FHP trooper Dennis Shorter.

The emergency dive team was called to the scene to search for any possible bodies in the pond and none were found.

"The driver, who is unknown, managed to get out of this vehicle and leave the scene," said Shorter.

Shorter said investigators are unsure if the driver was injured or not. But a source at the scene told us footsteps and vomit were spotted, leading away from the area where the car crashed into the pond.

The car was removed from the pond and towed around 5 a.m.

"The emergency dive team came back out and set up their equipment. They managed to get the vehicle hooked to the tow truck pretty quickly and they were able to remove the vehicle from the retention pond," said Shorter.

FHP said it believes only one person was involved in the crash. They are working to run the tag of the vehicle to locate the owner.

Because the driver left the scene of the crash, he or she could face careless driving charges.