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M/SUNNY Temp: 53 °F Wind: NW at 12 mph Saturday, April 26, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend April 5, 2003 Rescuers prepare to carry Beverleycq Cox of White City up the bank of Little Butte Creek on Friday after he drove his truck into the creek below the Main Street bridge in Eagle Point. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Driver rescued White City man drives pickup into creek By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune EAGLE POINT — Rescue workers pulled an 80-year-old man from the swift-moving water of Little Butte Creek after he drove his car off the road Friday. Beverley Cox, of the 200 block of Del Rio Avenue, White City, apparently blacked out, causing his Dodge pickup truck to swerve off Royal Avenue and hurtle into the creek around 2 p.m., said Eagle Point police officer Jim Gray. "He made just a direct shot into the river," said Don Hickman, deputy fire marshal with Jackson County Fire District No. 3. Nine firefighters were called to the rescue. Cox was on oxygen, evidently for a medical condition, said firefighters who saw the man’s oxygen tank as they pulled him from his pickup. Rescuers pulled Cox through the passenger door of his pickup approximately 45 minutes after the vehicle hit the water, Hickman said. Firefighters first had to tie the pickup to trees on the creek bank because the vehicle was starting to float downstream, Hickman said. Paramedics treated Cox for hypothermia and took him to Rogue Valley Medical Center where he later was listed in stable condition, Gray said. Cox was conscious throughout the rescue, Hickman said. No one else was injured. Cox nearly hit Tracy Guenther’s green Pontiac Grand Am at the intersection of Royal Avenue and Main Street. The Eagle Point resident said she heard Cox’s truck accelerate and wondered if his foot hit the gas pedal instead of the brakes. Guenther said she watched the white and gray pickup narrowly miss a right turn onto the Main Street bridge, squeeze between two power poles and fly down the bank toward the creek. "He was airborne," she said. "He never braked." Guenther hurried down to the creek and asked Cox if he was all right before calling for help, she said. The scene drew a crowd of onlookers who braved wind and hail to watch the rescue and a tow truck’s efforts to dislodge the pickup. Elementary school students — who were released for the day shortly after the accident — clambered up and down the creek bank. "We were very, very fortunate," Gray said of the accident’s timing. "Another 30 minutes and school would have been out." Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S