RESCUERS ‘STORM’ IN
NYPD, FDNY pull man to safety after 30-ft. fall down Qns. drain
A man plunged 30 feet down a storm drain in Queens on Sunday and was trapped for hours with a broken ankle — until a highly skilled team of NYPD and FDNY first responders hoisted him to safety, officials said.
The 47-year-old victim was climbing a ladder leading into the water shaft in a wooded area of the Whitestone Expressway when he slipped and fell Sunday morning, officials said.
The victim, stuck at the bottom in a running stream near the Whitestone Bridge, called his brother, who searched for an hour to find the hidden shaft.
“You would never find this place. It was in the middle of nowhere, an old water shaft with a stream running down the bottom of it,” said FDNY Special Operations Chief Patrick Ginty. “Just an open shaft.”
Firefighters used chain saws to chop down trees and gain access to the area, while a member of the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit climbed down the hole and kept the victim company.
After the area was cleared of trees, first responders were able to drive a fire truck off the Whitestone Expressway to the shaft. Firefighter Kris Kabashi descended and harnessed the man up around 8:45 a.m.
“It took us a while to find the incident, but we found he was conscious. We were able to talk to him,” said Ginty. “We lowered down, patched him up.”
FDNY Squads 61 and 288 worked with Rescue 3 and Rescue 4 and the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit to hoist the victim out of the hole using a ladder tower on the fire truck. “This is stuff we train on and it’s a rare occasion we get to use,” said Ginty. “It was a smooth operation.”
EMS took the victim to an area hospital.
The victim’s clothes were strewn around the hole, where he apparently was hanging out before falling. His brother told first responders the victim has a history of mental illness, sources said.