A man driving to Cape May with his family had to accelerate when a drawbridge abruptly starting rising beneath their vehicle, police said.
Terence Naphys was driving with his wife, daughter and her friend when the Middle Thorofare Bridge lifted three to six feet as their RAV4 crossed, according to WRC.
So Naphys accelerated and jumped the gap.
"It's scary what's going through your mind," Naphys told WRC. "We could have all landed in the water."
However, they landed safely on the other side of the 65-foot-tall bridge and were able to drive away without injury. The car sustained about $10,000 in damage, including a bent suspension.
The incident was due to operator error on the part of the bridge tender, police said. The operator was blinded by the glare of the sun. When he checked the bridge for cars, he thought Naphys' vehicle would cross before the bridge lifted.
The bridge was rising to allow a commercial fishing boat, which did not have working radio communication at the time, to pass.
Although uninjured, Naphys is scared to cross another drawbridge.
"I will never, ever drive that bridge or probably any drawbridge again," he said.
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