Stunt turns nearly fatal

Now he knows. Five hundred feet is too far.

The driver of a Hummer nearly drowned Wednesday after performing a test to determine how far he could get his SUV into the Columbia River and still back it out, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office reported.

Merle C. Sorenson, 48, of Woodinville, Wash., told deputies he also was trying to clean his tires.

Deputies found the man’s 1997 Hummer submerged about 500 feet from the shoreline near the Crescent Bar boat launch, about 10 miles west of Quincy.

Four passengers had already escaped the vehicle when deputies responded to their 911 call, but Sorenson was trapped between the front seat and steering wheel with only his head above water when fire crews rescued him, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies said Sorenson told them he’d consumed six beers that night. He was treated for mild hypothermia at the Quincy Valley Hospital. Charges are pending, according to the Sheriff’s Office.