ANDALUSIA, Illinois -
Rock Island County Sheriff's Department say a man died in the Mississippi River Tuesday afternoon after his car went off Highway 92. It's a stretch of road known for accidents.
Around 12:30 this afternoon two men called 9-1-1 after seeing a splash on the Mississippi River and then realized a car was under water. When the Rock Island County police got there they found a car 75 feet away from the river bank.
An ambulance rushed to Highway 92 just 4 and 1/2 miles outside Andalusia where the road curves. Rescue crews were on the scene trying to save a man inside a blue Honda station wagon. But it was too late.
Ron Schoolen says, "He'd been in the water for about a half hour 45 minutes before they got here."
Sgt. Darren Hart says, "Muscatine County Sheriff one of their dive team members entered where the vehicle was it was kind of a shallow area, but it was fully submerged when the subject was taken from the vehicle."
Ron Schoolen lives nearby and watched as the ambulance took the man's body away and his car pulled from the river. He says rescuers did a good job. But it's the road that is the problem.
Schoolen says, "There's no guard rail here and look at it you got about six feet of bank right there this is the worst place, any place in the country you'd fine a guardrail."
Driving Highway 92 or Andalusia Road you can see how someone driving too fast or not familiar with the road could get hurt. At Ducky's Lagoon in Andalusia, Darren Parchert says his aunt had an accident at the same bend in the road where Tuesday's accident happened.
"She got off the road and went down the curve and hit a tree, the river was not up. She was killed."
So he was not surprised by this deadly accident.
Parchert says, "There use to be years ago everybody be having bumper stickers on their cars saying pray for me I drive Andalusia Road because people die on Andalusia Road all the time."
He and Schoolen say something needs to be done to protect drivers.
Parchert says, "There should be guardrails down there on that and I would think with all the accidents happening down there that somebody would do something but nothing has happened yet."
Schoolen says, "It's been a bad spot for a long time and maybe this will get it taken care of."
Schoolen told me he's been driving Highway 92 for 50 years. He says last year a motorcycle went into the river at that spot. And he knows of six or seven accidents that have happened there. Parchert told me he personally helped another woman get out of her car after it went off the road and ended up the river.
Rock Island County Sheriff's Department says the cause of Tuesday's accident is still under investigation and they are with holding the victim's name until family can be told.
Around 12:30 this afternoon two men called 9-1-1 after seeing a splash on the Mississippi River and then realized a car was under water. When the Rock Island County police got there they found a car 75 feet away from the river bank.
An ambulance rushed to Highway 92 just 4 and 1/2 miles outside Andalusia where the road curves. Rescue crews were on the scene trying to save a man inside a blue Honda station wagon. But it was too late.
Ron Schoolen says, "He'd been in the water for about a half hour 45 minutes before they got here."
Sgt. Darren Hart says, "Muscatine County Sheriff one of their dive team members entered where the vehicle was it was kind of a shallow area, but it was fully submerged when the subject was taken from the vehicle."
Ron Schoolen lives nearby and watched as the ambulance took the man's body away and his car pulled from the river. He says rescuers did a good job. But it's the road that is the problem.
Schoolen says, "There's no guard rail here and look at it you got about six feet of bank right there this is the worst place, any place in the country you'd fine a guardrail."
Driving Highway 92 or Andalusia Road you can see how someone driving too fast or not familiar with the road could get hurt. At Ducky's Lagoon in Andalusia, Darren Parchert says his aunt had an accident at the same bend in the road where Tuesday's accident happened.
"She got off the road and went down the curve and hit a tree, the river was not up. She was killed."
So he was not surprised by this deadly accident.
Parchert says, "There use to be years ago everybody be having bumper stickers on their cars saying pray for me I drive Andalusia Road because people die on Andalusia Road all the time."
He and Schoolen say something needs to be done to protect drivers.
Parchert says, "There should be guardrails down there on that and I would think with all the accidents happening down there that somebody would do something but nothing has happened yet."
Schoolen says, "It's been a bad spot for a long time and maybe this will get it taken care of."
Schoolen told me he's been driving Highway 92 for 50 years. He says last year a motorcycle went into the river at that spot. And he knows of six or seven accidents that have happened there. Parchert told me he personally helped another woman get out of her car after it went off the road and ended up the river.
Rock Island County Sheriff's Department says the cause of Tuesday's accident is still under investigation and they are with holding the victim's name until family can be told.
