Car splashes into pond

FISHERSVILLE — A Waynesboro man lost control of his car Wednesday morning and the vehicle careened into a shallow pond 150 feet off Route 250.

Shaun Snead, 23, was driving westbound at about 8:30 a.m., roughly a half-mile past Goose Greek Road, when his car hit a mailbox, crossed over the eastbound lanes and barrelled down an embankment through bushes and grasses into the pond, Virginia State Police Trooper Aaron Coffey said.

The Waynesboro First Aid Crew waited about an hour for a tow truck to partially remove the green 1999 Pontiac Sunfire from the pond before loading Snead onto a stretcher and transporting him to Augusta Health. His car had been immersed in about 2 feet of water.

Details of his injuries were unavailable, but Snead was conscious at the scene and communicative at the hospital, Coffey said.

Authorities charged Snead with driving under the influence, Coffey said.

Rescuers retrieved a purple can of 3M Dust Remover from the car before pulling Snead onto a waiting stretcher. Coffey said the can will be part of the crash investigation but declined to comment further. Authorities are awaiting lab results, the trooper said.

“He has no memory of the crash,” Coffey said. “It would be safe to assume speed was a factor. He never laid on the brakes.”

Snead was released from the hospital with a court summons.

At least one other driver headed eastbound spoke with Coffey about witnessing the crash, the trooper said. He added that such an accident is rare in the area.

“Vehicle in a pond: that would be my first,” he said.