Middletown man saves stranger from drowning in icy pond
An Orange County man jumped into ice cold water to save a stranger after witnessing a car crash on Tuesday. The victim, 45-year-old Claudio Gonzalez, was trapped and drowning inside his submerged SUV
News 12 Staff
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Jan 14, 2016, 3:06 AM
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Updated 3,024 days ago
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An Orange County man jumped into ice cold water to save a stranger after witnessing a car crash on Tuesday.
The victim, 45-year-old Claudio Gonzalez, was trapped and drowning inside his submerged SUV in Mount Hope.
John Kientopp, of Middletown, used his bare hands to punch and pry open the driver's side window, rescuing Gonzalez.
Gonzalez skid on black ice Tuesday night in Mount Hope and plummeted sideways into the icy pond.
His car quickly filled with water, which kept his window and door from opening.
"One minute later, I would have died in there," said Gonzalez.
Both men are OK, despite their ordeal.
