A bystander, Lesley Tomlinson, a former lifeguard, rescued two occupants of an SUV who crashed into the Rideau River in Ottawa on Friday morning. The SUV went into the water at around 5:50 a.m. near Mooney's Bay, and two people inside managed to make it back to shore before being assessed by paramedics. Tomlinson herself dove into the water to rescue one of the passengers, who couldn't swim, using her basic swimming skills. According to Tomlinson, having basic swimming skills is crucial in situations like this, as demonstrated by the driver's inability to keep his head up and the passenger's panic.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Lesley Tomlinson, who was out for a run in Ottawa, witnessed an SUV crash into the Rideau River near Mooney's Bay at around 5:50 a.m. on Friday morning. The vehicle had skidded through an intersection, hit a light pole, and gone over the embankment before entering the water. Tomlinson was one of several bystanders who rushed to help the occupants, with some being able to swim and others not. The two people inside the SUV were eventually rescued and assessed by paramedics on scene, but it's unclear how many total individuals were involved in the rescue effort or their specific roles.
Written for “Ottawa Car Accident Rescue” on 2026-09-07,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 4920 · logged 2026-09-05
Bystanders rescue SUV occupants who crashed into Rideau River
Shows how important it is to have basic swimming skills, says one rescuer
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rescuer → rescue → skills
Two people whose SUV crashed into the Rideau River on Friday morning are safe after several others who were in the area rushed into action to rescue them.
Emergency services responded to the single-vehicle collision around 5:50 a.m. at the corner of Riverside Drive and Walkley Road near Mooney's Bay, according to Ottawa paramedics.
uncertain
services → crash → paramedics
They said an SUV went into the water and that two people inside had made it back to shore.
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people → say → shore
They were assessed by paramedics and released at the scene.
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They → assess → scene
CBC News saw a long silver pole on the road and boats labeled "Ottawa Fire" on the water around 6 a.m. on Friday.
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News → see → Friday
Lesley Tomlinson had been out for a run that morning and was near the intersection when she heard the sound of a car braking and skidding.
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she → hear → car
She told CBC the SUV had skidded through the intersection, hit the light pole, went over the embankment and crashed into the water.
"I was dumbfounded," she said.
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she → tell → water
'He can't swim!'
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He → swim → ?
"There was definitely a moment of panic as to, how do I help these people?" Tomlinson said.
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Tomlinson → be → people
Two other people emerged on the scene to help, she said.
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she → emerge → scene
One woman came out of a house nearby and called 911, while another woman who'd been in a car behind the SUV pulled over and jumped into the water.
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who → come → water
Tomlinson said she watched her help the driver out of the car and then go around to the passenger's side, yelling: "He can't swim!"
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He → say → side
A former lifeguard, Tomlinson dove into the water.
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Tomlinson → dive → water
When she reached the car, it was mostly submerged and the passenger was holding onto it.
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passenger → reach → it
"I was very assertive and I told him that he was not to touch me, he was not to put his arms around me, that that would mean we would both drown," Tomlinson recalled.
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Tomlinson → tell → me
"I told him that he is going to lie on his back and I am going to hold his head and I'm going to bring him in. ...
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I → tell → him
We got him into that position just as the car completely submerged."
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car → get → position
'You really need basic swimming skills'
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You → need → skills
Tomlinson said she swam with him to shore while supporting his head.
Speaking to CBC News afterwards, she said it didn't hit her how extraordinary the situation was in the moment.
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situation → say → moment
Tomlinson emphasized that it was a group effort to help, saying the woman who had pulled over and jumped in first was "the real superstar."
Later that day, Tomlinson went to work as a teacher and told her students about what happened.
"
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what → emphasize → students
I felt it was so important to impress upon them the ability to swim.
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it → feel → ability
The driver was not a strong swimmer but he could keep his head up ...
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he → keep → head
the other person couldn't swim and didn't know what to do," she said.
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she → swim → what
"I really think the takeaway from this whole thing is that you really need basic swimming skills because you never know what situation you're going to be in."
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you → think → situation
Police told CBC on Saturday that the SUV had been recovered from the Rideau River.
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SUV → tell → River
