A 19-year-old man is facing impaired driving charges after his car ended up in Lake Ontario early Saturday morning.
It happened around 5:30 a.m. at the foot of Lower Spadina Avenue and Queens Quay.
According to police, the man was travelling southbound on Lower Spadina and did not notice that the road was coming to an end.
Two people witnessed the accident and were able to pull the man to safety using a life preserver.
He was then taken to hospital with minor injuries.
"What is most alarming about this particular situation is the fact that had it happened at another time of day the results would have been absolutely horrific," Sgt. Eric Goodwin told CP24 at the scene. "We could have easily seen pedestrians struck and entering the water with that vehicle."
The man was only in the water for about four minutes, but it took the Toronto Police Marine Unit most of the day to pull his 2004 Mercedes SUV from the water.
Before removing the vehicle from the lake around 2 p.m., divers had to confirm that no other passengers were inside.
Speed is believed to have been a factor in the accident.
Hang Jiang is charged with impaired driving and over 80 milligrams operation. He is scheduled to appear in court February 21.
