PICTURES: Car that '˜went into water' at Shoreham Port is retrieved

A car that went into the water at Shoreham Port this morning has now been retrieved, a port spokesman confirmed.
The car has been retrieved from the waterThe car has been retrieved from the water
The car has been retrieved from the water

Emergency services were called to Basin Road South in Portslade at 8.51am today (Monday, September 4) after receiving reports that a car had gone into the water, police said.

Calvin Oram was working nearby at Hove Car Spares in Wellington Road, Portslade, when he heard the news.

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“It was unbelievable,” said the 49-year-old, of Priory Close in Sompting.

“I’ve been working here for thirty years and I’ve never seen a car in the water.”

After hearing the news, Mr Oram and his coworkers rushed out of the office.

“We ran out across the road to make sure it was all under control,” he said.

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“A guy who was working there jumped straight in with a ring around him.

“He got someone out of the passenger side.

“He was rescued within minutes.
“As they were swimming back, the car went straight under.”

Police confirmed that a man had been pulled out of the water uninjured.

A spokesman said the red Vauxhall Astra sank within minutes but its position was marked by a Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboat to await location by a Shoreham Port Authority diving team.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency were informed.

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The spokesman said: “The car driver, believed to be a man aged 43 and the vehicle’s only occupant, was uninjured but badly shaken.

“He was detained under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act.”

An ambulance and the Shoreham RNLI were also called to the scene, police said.