It took cranes, crews, and several weeks, but Portland police finally brought a white Toyota Corolla back to dry land on Tuesday morning, recovering the vehicle at the center of one of the city’s most heartbreaking tragedies this April. The car, which sits at the center of a deadly police chase, was lifted from the Willamette River and placed on the grass at Tom McCall Waterfront Park before noon.
The crash, which happened on April 6, claimed the lives of three young people from Beavercreek, Oregon. Police identified the victims as Jakob Esperum, 20; Garcia-Chavez, 19; and Trent Badillo, 17. A fourth person in the vehicle survived, escaping the sinking car and being pulled from the river by first responders shortly after the crash.
The incident began when Portland officers spotted the car speeding through downtown, running red lights and driving the wrong way. When officers attempted a traffic stop, the driver fled, tore through Tom McCall Waterfront Park, and went straight into the river. What followed was a recovery operation that stretched over two weeks and tested the limits of what emergency crews could do in one of Oregon’s most powerful waterways…