Woman Follows GPS, Drives Car Into Canada's Georgian Bay
— -- Following directions from her car's GPS, a 23-year-old Canadian woman drove straight into a frigid Ontario bay earlier this week.
The woman, who was not familiar with the area, was driving in Tobermory when she missed a right turn and drove straight into a boat launch leading into the Georgian Bay, Katrina Rubinstein-Gilbert, Media and Community Safety Officer for the Bruce Peninsula Ontario Provincial Police, told ABC News.
Thursday was a "dark and stormy night," Rubinstein-Gilbert said, and visibility was low.
The car's momemtum carried it out past the shore, and the red Toyota Yaris sunk below the surface, Rubenstein-Gilbert said. Luckily, the "fast-thinking" woman was able to roll down her window before the car's power cut out and swim to shore, Rubinsteim-Gilbert added.
Police said the water temperature was below 40 degrees Fahrenheit and that the woman had to swim almost 100 feet to shore. She then walked to a local hotel to call for help since her cell phone was still inside the car, Rubinstein-Gilbert said.
An onlooker, Andrea Vincze, who photographed the car as it was towed out of the bay, told ABC News the boat ramp leading into the water is "pretty wide" and could easily be mistaken for a street.
Vincze said her husband, Zsolt, a local diving instructor, helped crews tow the car out Friday morning.
The car, which tilted onto its side at the bottom of of the bay, is not repairable, Vincze said. The driver was not injured in the incident, Rubinstein-Gilbert said.
