Good Samaritans rescue 2 teens, baby boy from sinking vehicle

APPLE RIVER, Wis. (KMSP) - Three men are being praised for managing to rescue two teens and a baby boy from a sinking vehicle in the town of Apple River, Wis. on Dec. 23.

According to the Polk County Sheriff's Office, 19-year-old Nycole Stream, of Amery, was driving a 2001 Toyota Tundra with her 5-month-old son Ayidden and 16-year-old Krystyna Walenczak northbound on County Highway H when she lost control. The car left the roadway at a steep embankment and entered the water, breaking through a thin layer of ice.

Terry and Pamela Blegen, of Balsam Lake, were traveling southbound on the highway when they saw the splash and discovered the pick-up floating upside down.

"As Pamela was communicating with the 9-1-1 dispatcher, Terry entered the water and tried to gain access to the occupants. As the vehicle began to sink, it settled on the driver's side exposing the passenger side window that had broken out during the initial crash," the Polk County Sheriff's Office stated in a press release.

Two additional passersby Thomas Cole, 40, of St. Croix Falls and Shawn Spafford, 46, of Amery, joined Blegen in the water and managed to rescue the two teens struggling to keep above the water.

"The three men determined that a small child was still submerged in the vehicle. All three men continued the search until the baby boy was located and removed from vehicle. The child, initially unresponsive, was revived by the rescuers," the Polk County Sheriff's Office said.

The two teens and baby were transported to Amery Hospital -- the baby boy was later transferred to Children's Hospital in St. Paul. According to Nycole, her son is doing okay and is now at home. No serious injuries were received by anyone in the vehicle.