Driver crashes, flees scene, rescued from marsh near Erin

TOWNSHIP OF ERIN, Wis. - The Washington County Sheriff's Office is investigating a single-vehicle crash that happened around 6:30 p.m. Friday along Highway Q in the Township of Erin. 

Witnesses observed a male subject exit the vehicle and run from the scene.

Upon arrival, the vehicle was found unoccupied and deputies began searching for the male subject who fled. 

Around 7:45 p.m., a K-9 track was started along a ditch on westbound Highway Q, however, the K-9 lost the scent of the subject in a swamp. 

Shortly after 9 p.m., a deputy heard a male subject yelling for help coming from the swampy area where the K-9 lost the track.

Based on the distress in the man’s voice, two deputies decided to enter the swamp in an attempt to locate the subject. After almost 45 minutes of traversing through 400 yards of sometimes waist-high water and mud, the deputies finally located the man in distress. 

After spending nearly five hours in the swamp, the man who was determined to be the driver of the crashed vehicle was finally extracted and turned over to rescue personnel. He was transported to an area hospital where he was evaluated with possible hypothermia.

The two deputies who initially located the subject were also transported and evaluated for possible hypothermia.

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