An Arlington man died Sunday shortly after he was pulled from a submerged, overturned car in frozen Rock Creek in the District. A jogger spotted a tire sticking out of the icy water just south of the P Street Bridge on Rock Creek Parkway at 10:22 a.m., U.S. Park Police said. Emergency crews responded to find a Honda on its roof, submerged in water and covered in ice.
Joshua Kuhlman, 22, was found in the vehicle. He later died at George Washington University Hospital.
The creek had frozen around the car, a Park Police spokesman said, but “swift” water continued to flow. Rescuers needed about 15 minutes to chip through the ice to reach Kuhlman, who was transported to the hospital in grave condition.
“People can survive these types of situations,” D.C. fire spokesman Pete Piringer said. There were no other people in the car.
The Park Police were investigating the incident. Little information was available, except that there were no witnesses. The incident closed the parkway from Shoreham Drive to Virginia Avenue, as well as the P Street ramp.
– Michael Neibauer
