Impaired woman swims to shore after driving SUV into Newport reservoir, police say

By CNN Newsource

Published March 3, 2023 12:43 pm

By Web staff

NEWPORT, Oregon (KPTV) — A woman was arrested Monday after police say she drove her SUV into a Newport reservoir while driving under the influence.

Just before 7:30 p.m., officers were asked to help find an overdue driver in the area of Northeast 12th and Northeast Eads streets. Police say 46-year-old Tammy Altishin, of Corvallis, was late meeting a family member at Sam Case School and was possibly driving while drunk.

While officers were doing a routine area check in the area of Big Creek Reservoir, they found a woman, later identified as Altishin, walking in the roadway. Police say Altishin was completely wet and appeared confused.

Altishin showed signs of impairment and reportedly told an officer she had “sunk her vehicle in a pond.” She told the officer she was lost and took a wrong turn, then tried to turn around and ended up backing her SUV into the water.

Altishin’s vehicle became completely submerged and she had to swim to shore, according to police. Officers looked for her SUV, but were not able to find it or find evidence of where the vehicle entered the water.

After an investigation, Altishin was booked into the Lincoln County Jail for driving under the influence of intoxicants.

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