Officials: Man freed after buried for hours in trench collapse
BETHEL — A worker was flown to Yale New Haven Hospital in serious condition Wednesday afternoon after a trench collapse left him buried up to his chin in dirt, officials said.
Bethel's Stony Hill Fire Department said in a statement first responders from throughout the area helped to free the man, including digging him out by hand at one point.
Officials said the man, who was not identified, was trapped for nearly 2 1⁄2 hours. Officials did not say what caused the collapse.
Stony Hill and Bethel volunteer firefighters were alerted to the incident on Budd Drive around 1 p.m. Wednesday. The Danbury Fire Department was also called to the scene to provide a technical rescue team and trench rescue trailer.
At the trench, first responders found a worker trapped in a hole around 13 to 15 feet deep. The worker was “up to his chin in dirt.” He was reported to be conscious and speaking when authorities arrived.
“Upon the arrival of additional resources, including Danbury's equipment, firefighters began to properly shore up the hole, preventing further collapse,” Stony Hill Fire Department said in a statement. “With the combined effort of Stony Hill, Bethel [and] Danbury firefighters working in the hole, dirt was removed by hand into buckets to help free the worker. A special call was made to the City of Danbury Public Works for a vacuum truck to better help firefighters remove the dirt.”
The worker was removed a few minutes before 4 p.m. The man was then flown to the hospital. The extent of his injuries was not immediately released.