SEATTLE — Divers found the body of a missing driver in the water below the Ship Canal Bridge in Seattle after a two-car crash early Tuesday morning.
The Seattle Police Department tweeted after 9 a.m. a dive team located the missing driver in the water, four hours after the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) first reported the lane closures just south of Northeast 45th Street around 4:40 a.m. All southbound lanes reopened just before 8 a.m., over three hours after the rollover accident.
The driver was identified as 22-year-old Jordan Shelley.
Seattle Fire spokesperson Kristin Tinsley said water rescue crews responded to the scene and divers were in the water about 15 minutes after the crash was reported.
Tinsley said two rescue swimmers were deployed from the shore. Harbor patrol was able to “splash a diver” into the water under the bridge to search the area. The two rescue swimmers and a diver searched the area for about an hour.
The search turned into a recovery mission around 5:45 a.m. due to the amount of time that passed.
According to the Washington State Patrol, Shelley was standing outside a disabled vehicle on the Ship Canal bridge when another vehicle hit Shelley's vehicle from behind. Shelley's vehicle was pushed forward, hitting Shelley and throwing him over the bridge's railing into the water below.
The driver of the other vehicle, who remained on the scene, was arrested for suspicion of DUI, Washington state Trooper Richard Allen said.
Southbound traffic was diverted onto Northeast 45th Street during the closure, and the I-5 express lanes were open for southbound drivers. All northbound lanes remained open.
The freeway was blocked for about 3.5 hours.
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