French woman driver crashes parking lots barriers, lands into swimming pool

In the French city of La Ciotat, a bizarre incident occurred when a 38-year-old woman mistook the accelerator for the brake, driving her luxury Jaguar XF into a swimming pool instead of a parking space.

The woman was not alone, her five-year-old daughter was sitting in the back seat when the car crashed through the pool's barrier and glass structure, coming to rest at the bottom among the swimmers.

Fortunately, two lifeguards and a bystander were on hand to rescue the mother and her child from the submerged car. None of the other swimmers in the pool at the time were injured, a fact that some described as miraculous.

The authorities said that the woman, who was believed to be unfamiliar with driving automatic vehicles, had confused the accelerator and brake pedals while parked, causing her car to end up at the bottom of the pool.

The mother and daughter were taken to the local hospital to be treated for shock, while rescuers and investigators began a preliminary inquiry into the incident. Social media users reacted with humour, with some describing the scene as reminiscent of a comedy action movie and others commenting that they initially thought it was an AI-generated image.

The pool will remain closed for weeks while the waters are decontaminated following the unplanned dive, and while the search for the submerged jaguar continues.