LAKELAND, FL — Lake land police say a frightening late-night search ended with officers rescuing a driver and two young children from a swamp after a single-vehicle crash on Sept. 9. Police said the driver, later identified as 27-year-old Isaac Kinsey, fled the wreck scene on foot after the crash, leaving behind two empty child safety seats.
Officers said the vehicle had gone through a road-closure sign and sandbags before entering a construction area, where it appeared to have rolled over. A drone was sent out to find the missing driver and children, and police later located Kinsey in a dark, wooded swamp near the crash site. Drone video and body camera footage captured the difficult rescue that followed.
Police say the car passed through a closure zone before rolling in a construction area
According to Lakeland Police, officers responded to what was described as a single-vehicle crash and found signs that the car had entered an area marked off for construction. The vehicle had gone through a road-closure sign and sandbags before ending up in the restricted space, where the crash appeared to have been a rollover.
When officers first reached the scene, the driver was already gone. The empty child safety seats raised immediate concern that children had been in the vehicle and were missing from the crash site. That discovery set off a search effort in an area that police said was swampy, wooded and difficult to move through, especially in the dark.
Drone and body camera footage guided officers to the missing family
Police said a drone was quickly deployed to search the surrounding area after officers learned the driver had fled. The technology proved critical in the search, helping officers spot Kinsey in the darkness near the crash site. The department also released body camera footage showing officers closing in on the group and bringing the rescue to an end.
In a statement, Lakeland Police praised the response and said the drone helped locate the children in an extremely difficult environment. The department said the rapid search and teamwork of responding officers prevented what could have been a far more devastating outcome. Police did not say how long the children had been missing before they were found.
Officers say Kinsey carried children through swamp water and fell repeatedly
Drone footage released by police showed Kinsey carrying two children, ages 2 years and 10 months, through the swamp. Officials said the terrain was so difficult that he fell multiple times while moving through the water and brush. During those falls, police said, the children became submerged in the swamp water.
Body camera video then showed officers finding Kinsey and the children and getting all three out of the area. Police said the rescue was made harder by the swamp conditions and the darkness, which limited visibility and slowed movement. The footage underscores how quickly a crash scene can turn dangerous when a driver leaves the roadway and heads into rough terrain with young children.
Children and driver were taken to a hospital for treatment after the rescue
After officers reached them, Kinsey and both children were taken to a local hospital for treatment. Police did not release information about the extent of their injuries, but the department’s statement made clear that officers viewed the situation as life-threatening given the age of the children and the conditions in the swamp.
Authorities said Kinsey told officers he was intoxicated and that he “displayed multiple indicators of impairment.” Police also said he had a suspended driver’s license. Those details became part of the criminal case that followed the rescue, along with the circumstances of the crash, the flight from officers and the discovery of the children in the wetland area.
Kinsey faces child abuse and other charges after the rescue
As a result of the incident, Kinsey faces multiple charges, including negligent child abuse with great bodily harm, according to police. The department has not listed every count in the public statement, but the charge it did name reflects the seriousness of the situation as investigators described it.
Lakeland Police said the incident could have ended with the loss of two innocent lives. In its statement, the department said there is no excuse for impaired driving and credited the quick drone deployment, persistence and teamwork of officers with helping save the children. Police said they are thankful the children survived and proud of the officers whose actions helped prevent an even greater tragedy.
