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The British Swim School instructor and lifeguard -- 29-year-old Anthony Capuano -- went in after him. And the entire rescue was caught on tape.
Capuano, of Elizabeth, was just 17 years old when he was struck by a train in Jersey City. He's been living with a prosthetic limb, but that hasn't stopped him from living an active life.
Three years ago, he became a swimming instructor, a certification which came in handy and made him the rescuer around 5:20 p.m. Tuesday.
Capuano, had just finished working out and was waiting for a friend's basketball game to end at the Stephen R. Gregg Park when he noticed commotion coming from the waterfront: Someone had driven their car into the water, and it was going down -- fast.
And so, Capuano removed his prosthetic leg, jumped in the ice cold water and made his way toward the Subaru Forester.
The driver, Joseph Kadian, was still inside. He did not know how to swim. He was panicking, Capuano said.
"I swam out to him and told him that I'm a lifeguard, and that I was there to help him," said Capuano, a British Swim School employee.
"I tried to calm him down and told him all he had to do was float in the airplane position -- it's one way we teach people how to float."
Kadian responded: "I can't."
Capuano said he knew from watching "What Would You Do" type shows that cars sink quickly. He had to act fast.
"I heard the air release and just pulled him out the window," Capuano said.
Capuano stabilized the panicked driver and reminded him to keep his head back. As he was swimming to shore, he looked around to see if anyone else had come in the water to help.
Luckily, his friend Marcelino "Lino" Cruz, of Jersey City, who swam out to help.
"Good thing Lino was there," Capuano said. "He had to strong arm [Kadian] into the airplane position, because of how much he kept panicking."
The pair brought Kadian to shore, where he was treated in an ambulance and released.
An investigation found Kadian was attempting to answer a phone call and pull over in the parking lot when he hit the gas and the brake pedals simultaneously, sending his SUV into the water, Hudson County Sheriff Frank X. Schillari said.
A couple days after the accident, Capuano spoke to Kadamian.
"He's doing good," the instructor said.
In addition to the vehicle in the bay, there was damage to the fence post and rails where the vehicle entered the water, Schillari said.
The agencies that assisted and responded include Bayonne Fire, Bayonne Police, Bayonne OEM, New Jersey State Police Marine and Aviation units. New Jersey State Police divers confirmed that there were no additional victims inside the sunken vehicle.
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