Fire crews rescue 4-year-old in car submerged in Brush Creek

Kansas City fire crews rescued a 4-year-old boy Monday afternoon who had been left in a running car that rolled into Brush Creek in near freezing temperatures.

Police and fire crews were called to the area near 47^th Street and Prospect Avenue at about 3:30 p.m. Police learned that the child’s mother had left her car running while she ran into a nearby business.

“Somehow her car got knocked into gear,” said KCFD Deputy Chief James Garrett. “That car rolled down that hill with the child in the car,” Garrett said, motioning to the scene where a fence had apparently been knocked down and tire tracks led into the creek.

Garrett said a person had flagged down a fire department rescue unit that happened to be nearby. Firefighters saw the 4-year-old in the car submerged in the water and knocked out the passenger side window to pull the child out.

The child was taken to a hospital with his mother to be looked at, Garrett said.

He said the child was “very lucky” that crews were nearby, considering the car ran into the deep creek with temperatures dropping into the lower 30s.

“They are trained in conditions like this to bring their equipment with them and be prepared to effect a rescue. They were trained to do this, and I’m very proud of them.”

This story was originally published January 29, 2018 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Fire crews rescue 4-year-old in car submerged in Brush Creek."