"Poise under pressure": Woman snaps selfie as car sinks in ice
Image: Twitter
A woman In Canada has been criticised for appearing to take a selfie from the roof of her submerged car as it sunk in a frozen lake.
The woman’s car became submerged after breaking through ice on the Rideau River in Ottawa on Sunday afternoon, requiring her to be rescued. Ottawa Police tweeted that local residents had come to her aid using “a kayak and quick thinking”.
Video obtained by 580 CFRA shows people rushing towards the woman with a kayak as she stands on top of her yellow car.
NEW: Neighbours use kayaks to rescue driver after car crashes through ice in Manotick #ottnews https://t.co/dhANorovWK
— CTV Ottawa (@ctvottawa) January 17, 2022
Resident Zachary King told CTV News Ottawa he and his neighbour Rob Crober were the ones who rescued the woman. "It’s like everything worked out perfectly,” he told the station.
“Got her on the kayak, pulled her in. And as soon as we pulled her in, the car went under. Fully."
Video shot by resident Sacha Gera appears to show the woman driving on the ice at speed ahead of the rescue. It was reported that nobody was injured.
Police said it served as an example that people should not drive across ice even when it looks safe.
It seems the woman spent her time waiting to be rescued snapping a selfie while on the roof of her car. “She captured the moment with a selfie while people hurried and worried to help her,” Lynda Douglas tweeted, along with a photo.
“Any time you are in a dangerous situation, you should not be taking selfies or doing anything distracting. You should be 100 per cent focused on being safe,” another man tweeted.
However, others were far less critical. “She's waiting to be rescued. What the hell else is she supposed to do?” one man tweeted.
“I appreciate her poise under pressure.”
Regardless, the drive on the ice has proven costly for the woman, with her car being written off. Police have also charged her with an offence.