Students rescue five from drowning

By: By Sarah Darr

Posted: 2/27/02

Five victims, including one infant, remained hospitalized Tuesday after 26-year-old Jose Rodriguez intentionally drove his family van 87 feet into the Offatts Bayou on Saturday, Galveston police said.

The driver's wife, 21-year-old Maria Rodriguez, and her cousin, 26-year-old Rosalinda Martinez were upgraded from critical to serious condition Tuesday. Martinez's two children, Melvin, 4, and Linda, 6, were also in the van, alongside infant Brenda, Jose and Maria Rodriguez's daughter. Melvin was upgraded Tuesday to serious condition, and Linda and Brenda remain in critical condition.

The van sank 10 feet into the murky water, and Rodriguez surfaced about a minute later against a strong current, witnesses said. A group of students from varsity sailing teams at local universities, including Texas A&M and the University of Texas, were standing nearby, preparing to begin a race. Students began to speak with Rodriguez in Spanish and he told them there were two children still inside the van.

It only took a second for their instincts to kick in, and students began diving in the water from the boats and the shore, said Jake Scott, the captain of the A&M Varsity Sailing Team. Scott said everyone had a part in helping the victims. Many found rocks to break open the windows and knives to cut the seat belts, and used their emergency training skills to administer CPR.

"Everybody there had a part, and everybody was a hero," Scott said.

Students rescued all five victims from the submerged vehicle, using an assembly line to get the victims to shore, said Jeff Smith, captain of the Galveston Fire Department. The last victim recovered from the van was seven-month-old Brenda Rodriguez. She was under the water the longest because students attempting to free her from her carseat ended up removing the whole carseat, Smith said.

'It was truly remarkable, it was one of the most amazing rescues I have ever seen," Smith said.

The conditions were very dangerous for the rescuers because of the possibility of leaking gasoline and toxins, said Sergeant Jorge Trevino of the Galveston Police Department. Trevino called it a heroic act on the part of the rescuers becasue of the unstable condition the vehicle was in while underwater.

The rescuers were not severely injured, which is unusual in this kind of case, Smith said.

With his experience in the field, Smith said he is amazed all of the victims were OK after being under water for so long. One UT student, Spencer Ogden, received stitches in his hand after using it to break a window.

The students worked together well in a very organized fashion, Smith said.

Scott said it was instinct that made the students react so quickly and work so well together in such a short amount of time.

"The leadership qualities associated with Aggies was consistent in this rescue," Smith said.

Victims trapped in submerged vehicles usually do not get out unless it is by their own means, Smith said.

"We know those victims would not have survived without the intervention of A&M and Texas students," Smith said.

Jose Rodriguez is in jail with a $250,000 bond on each of four counts of attempted capital murder, totaling $1 million, Trevino said. The next step in the case will be to present the case to a grand jury, Trevino said. A trial date has not been set.

Rodriguez told police "God told him to do it," Trevino said.

All five victims were still in critical condition at John Sealy Hospital Tuesday night. The victims include the driver's wife, 21-year-old Maria Rodriguez, and her cousin, 26-year-old Rosalinda Martinez. Martinez's two children, Melvin,4 and Linda, 6, were also in the van, alongside infant Brenda, Jose and Maria Rodriguez's daughter.

Trauma surgeon Steven Wolf said the infant was assumed dead when she first arrived at the hospital, but began breathing again on her own a few minutes later, The Galveston County Daily News reported.

Wolf said the victims are not in the clear, but are doing as well as can be expected.