Former Marine Tried to Rescue People Trapped in Submerged Car

Matthew Sneed was seated in a truck in Tanglewood Mobile Village in Holiday Wednesday when he heard a noise.

He didn’t see the 2012 silver Ford Fusion hit the curb at the south end of the around 11 a.m., but he witnessed the immediate aftermath.

It was airborne, he said of the car. It “flipped” and landed in a retention pond, resting on its roof in about 6 feet of water.

The 24-year-old former Marine, who works for Arrow Environmental Services in Largo, where he lives, sprang into action.

Standing on the bank of the pond, he took off his boots and socks and entered the water. He swam out to the car, which was in the middle of the pond, and went to the rear doors.

“I bashed on the doors to see if anyone was going to hit back,” he said.

He didn’t hear any response. He couldn’t see inside the car.

The doors wouldn’t open because of the water pressure. He didn’t have a tool to open the windows.

Rescuers arrived as he was attempting to open a passenger side door, he said. Sneed assisted until rescuers broke a window and opened the door. The next day, two Pasco County Sheriff's deputies said Sneed was at the car when they arrived. Firefighters arrived with a tool rescuers used to punch open a window, the deputies said.* 

Pasco County Fire Rescue pulled Mary Wright Stucky, 85, out of the car, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, and a deputy helped drag her to shore.*

She was taken to Community Hospital, where she later died.

When rescuers hauled the car out of the pond, the body of Samuel David Stucky, 88, was found inside. He had died at the scene, highway patrol officials said. Samuel and Mary Stucky were reportedly a married couple. They lived in Holiday.

Residents of the mobile home park and Sneed’s employer called him a hero.

He was offered a cigarette by Charlene Williamson, a resident of Courtney Drive who said she saw the car speeding and swerving on Courtney from an opposite shore. He deserved an honor, she said.

But Sneed was contrite afterward.

“I am deeply sorry for the victims’ family and friends,” he wrote in an email to Patch. “I learned in the Marine Corps to give your all and if that’s not enough give some more. I tried my best to save this man’s life, but I did not have the tools or the ability to pry the doors open or break the window."

Sneed said he is open to communicating with the bereaved. Contact Alex.Tiegen@patch.com if you would like to get in touch with him.

*Article updated with information that wasn't available at time of reporting.