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Authorities in Virginia are investigating after a car drove off a fishing pier into the Atlantic Ocean just before 7 a.m. on Saturday (January 27). Bystanders watched in horror as the car drove across the boardwalk, smashed through two gates, sped down the 1,000-foot Virginia Beach Fishing Pier, and crashed into the ocean.
Police responded and used sonar to locate the car, which was about 15 feet down in the water and not visible from the pier.
"From the scans that we have, we do believe the vehicle is located at the bottom of the ocean," Officer Jude Brenya with the Virginia Beach Police Department said. "It takes a while to get the divers prepped, and then they have to have a plan in place [before divers can enter the water]."
"At this point, we're trying to do every measure to retrieve the vehicle from the water," Brenya added. "We have our marine patrol unit out. They're working on ways to try to recover the vehicle and investigate and see what we're working with."
Officials have not said how many people were in the car or determined why the driver drove it into the water.