UPDATE, 10:23 a.m.: Washington State Patrol investigators believe the car that flipped into the retention pond and was found about 7 a.m. had been there for some time.

Trooper Brandy Kessler said the first trooper on the scene said the part of the car that was out of the water was dry indicating the accident had happened sometime overnight.

She said speed appeared to be a factor in the crash on the curved off-ramp from northbound Interstate 5 to westbound 38th Street. It appeared the driver missed the curve and vaulted over the embankment. The car was going fast enough to stay airborne about 70 feet, she said. The car cleared a five-foot chain link fence near the pond before diving down into the water and flipping over on its top.

“They suspect he was not wearing his seatbelt,” Kessler said. “It appears he might have hit the windshield.” The exact cause of death – drowning or trauma – will come from an autopsy, she added.

Divers did search the entire pond and found no other bodies, Kessler added.

UPDATE, 9:50 a.m.: The body found inside the car was a 24 to 25 year old man, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner.

The body, which was found submerged in water in the car, was removed and taken to the Medical Examiner’s office. A spokeswoman there said they are trying to locate the man’s next of kin and hope to be able to release the identity of the victim this afternoon.

The retention pond that the car flipped into was three to four feet deep, according to a Tacoma Fire Department spokesman.

A tow truck has pulled the overturned-car from the pond, Tacoma Fire spokesman Joe Meinecke said. Investigators confirmed that one person was dead inside.

The Washington State Patrol is now conducting a death investigation.

“It’s a body recovery operation,” Meinecke said.

It appears the car crashed coming off northbound I-5 on the 38th Street off-ramp. It went over a fence and landed upside down in the pond, investigators said.

Emergency responders were called to the scene shortly before 7 a.m. It wasn’t immediately clear when the crash occurred.

Tacoma fire crews and its technical rescue team, Washington State Patrol troopers and the Pierce County dive team are on the scene.

Emergency responders are partially blocking the 38th Street on-ramp to northbound I-5. The on-ramp is open, with traffic getting by on the shoulder, the state Department of Transportation reports.

The scene is a distraction for drivers along Interstate 5. As of 7:40 a.m., traffic is backed up one mile to the 56th Street exit.

UPDATE: DOT reports the back up is now gone. The ramps remain partially blocked.