2 children and 1 adult dead after van rolls into pond at Connecticut park

A woman chased her minivan as it rolled down a steep hill and jumped in before it sank into a pond Wednesday, killing her and two children inside, authorities said. A third child was in critical condition.

The woman, who was the mother of at least one of the children, had gotten out of the van, then noticed it was rolling away and jumped back in before it went into the water, Police Chief Bryan Norwood said.

The van rolled about 60 or 70 yards into Bunnell's Pond at Beardsley Park, where many people had gathered to celebrate the holiday.

The victims were trapped inside in 15 to 20 feet of water for 20 to 25 minutes before members of the Bridgeport police scuba team were able to pull them out. Rescuers tried to revive them before they were taken to local hospitals.

Fire Battalion Chief Ismael Pomales said the woman apparently got out of the van to ask directions to a Fourth of July barbecue, but police would not confirm that Wednesday night.

"It's horrible," Pomales said. "We've had children die before. That's probably one of the toughest things for any rescue person to deal with."

The woman was identified as Michelle McIntosh by the chief medical examiner's office late Wednesday. A spokesman for the agency also identified one of the dead children as David McIntosh. The ages of the woman and the boy were unavailable.

The medical examiner's office did not discuss the relationship between the woman and the child. Police did not name the victims.

Michelle McIntosh lived less than a mile from the pond where the accident occurred.

Police said all three children in the van were younger than 7. Autopsies were planned for Thursday.

Michelle McIntosh died at St. Vincent's Medical Center, Pomales said. David McIntosh and a second child died at Bridgeport Hospital, a hospital spokesman said. A third child, a 6-year-old boy, was sent to Yale-New Haven Hospital. Hospital officials said the boy was in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

People nearby tried unsuccessfully to stop the van, Pomales said. Fire personnel could not reach the people inside the vehicle. The Bridgeport Police Department's scuba team arrived a few minutes later and removed the victims from the van.

Beardsley Park was closed while emergency crews worked but later reopened.

Blanch Arpie, who lives two doors down from the family, said the father's name also is David McIntosh. She said she saw him outside recently teaching one of the children to ride a bike without training wheels while another child rode a Big Wheel. She called them a close-knit family.

"It's breaking my heart," Arpie said. It's just horrible."