EASTLAKE, Ohio — Eastlake police are investigating after a reckless driver went through a guardrail and into the Chagrin River on Friday morning.
It happened outside of Trader Jack's on Lakeshore Boulevard around 10:30 a.m.
Eastlake police chief Michael Werner said the department received a call from a Willowick detective on Friday morning who said he saw a vehicle driving recklessly eastbound on Lakeshore Boulevard into Eastlake.
By the time officers got to the area, they could not locate the vehicle.
On land.
Werner said they then received reports of a vehicle in the Chagrin River.
Witnesses tell News 5 they saw the navy Chevrolet Cruze coming in fast, plowing through a guard rail, then launching into the river and landing on the other side of the water.
"He almost made it, like the Dukes of Hazard," said Mike Mormino, who was fishing with his grandson when the crash happened.
"He must have been doing 100 because he flew all the way across the river. I couldn't believe what I was seeing," said Chuck Ronevich, who was fishing when the crash occurred.
Werner said he was not sure where the driver started from or where he intended to go, but the man ended up in Trader Jack's parking lot, where he drove through the guardrail and into the river.
The man fled from the car and was apprehended a short distance away, Werner said.
The driver is currently in the hospital, and the crash is still being investigated, Werner said.
