Man drowns after car crashes into canal near Malaga

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A man drowned after he veered off into a canal south of Fresno Friday evening, the California Highway Patrol announced.

Around 9:20 p.m., CHP says they responded to Chesnut Avenue, north of North Avenue near Malaga, for a report of a vehicle submerged in a canal after crashing.

Officers say a man was headed southbound in a Mercury Milan when, for reasons yet to be determined, he veered west off the road and into the nearby canal, becoming completely submerged.

Investigators say witnesses report he was able to exit the vehicle and call for help, but was struggling to stay afloat. Before crews arrived, the man went underwater and did not resurface.

First responders arrived, including a helicopter, and scanned the canal for several thousand feet until about 10 p.m., when the man was found 80 feet south of the submerged vehicle. Life-saving efforts were made until he was eventually transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.

CHP is actively working to determine the circumstances leading up to the crash.