How to Escape a Sinking Car Submerged in Water

What to Do in the First Moments

Remember S-U-R-E: Stay calm, Unbuckle, Roll down or break a side window, Exit. That is the sequence in AAA’s sinking vehicle guidance. Act as soon as the car enters water, while the window may still operate.

1. Unbuckle. Release your belt and help passengers release theirs. Use a belt cutter if a buckle is jammed.
2. Open a side window immediately. Try the window switch. If it fails, use a suitable escape tool on a tempered side window.
3. Get everyone out through the window. Help children out, then exit yourself. Move away from the vehicle and toward safety.
4. Call 911 when safe. Tell dispatch where the car entered the water and whether anyone remains inside.

Do not pause to collect belongings. AAA warns against waiting for the cabin to fill so that a door might open; that leaves little time or air for an escape.

Which Window Can You Open or Break?

Use a side window as your first exit. If its switch works, lower it at once. If it does not, a spring loaded escape tool can break tempered side glass. AAA’s tests found that common tools did not shatter laminated side glass. A windshield is also a poor target.

Find out which side windows your vehicle has before an emergency. AAA recommends checking the markings at the bottom corner of the glass and keeping a backup exit plan.

Getting Children and Passengers Out

Tell passengers the plan in short words: “Belt off. Window open. Out.” Release younger children from restraints and guide them through the opening. AAA advises sending children out first while you help them. The exact order may depend on who can safely assist and where the open window is.

For example, if a rear passenger can open a working window while you free a child from a car seat, use that opening. Keep the group moving toward the nearest safe shore or high point once outside.

If No Window Will Open

Try another side window or an available roof opening immediately. If the glass is laminated or an escape tool fails, AAA recommends moving toward any remaining air pocket and calling 911 if possible. Opening a door after water pressure equalizes is a last resort, not a plan to wait for.

A vehicle caught in fast moving floodwater presents a different danger from one sinking into still water. Ready.gov advises staying inside a car trapped in rapidly moving water and getting onto its roof if water rises inside. Follow instructions from emergency responders for your situation. Never drive into floodwater; see our flooded road guide.

Prepare Your Car Before an Emergency

• Check whether each side window is tempered or laminated.
• Mount a belt cutter and window tool where you can reach it while buckled in; practice finding it by touch.
• Show regular passengers which window to use and how to unbuckle child restraints.
• Turn around at a flooded road. Learn how water affects control in our wet weather driving guide.

Quick Knowledge Check

Your car has just entered deep, still water. What should you do first?

For more everyday emergency scenarios, review what to do after a crash.