Firefighters from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue pulled a man to safety after the man fell 40-feet from a bridge several days ago. The man could not move or call for help for three days. A maintenance worker heard a voice cry out from underneath a bridge at the Port of Miami and called for help.
Firefighters from Miami-Dade Fire's Port of Miami unit arrived, assessed the situation, and called for the Miami-Dade Fire's Technical Rescue Team to perform a high-angle rescue.
The special unit firefighters immediately set up a bar-rack lowering system and a double-prusik belay system and descended to treat the victim. Both rescuers were firefighter-paramedics. As the entry crew treated the victim, firefighters topside rigged a 3:1 Z-Rig and used a 75-foot Aerial as change of direction. A stokes basket was lowered down and then hauled up with the patient.
The victim told firefighters that he drank water runoff from the bridge during his three day ordeal.
The patient was sent to Ryder Trauma Center via Miami-Dade Fire's Air Rescue helicopter. The entire operation was completed in less than an hour.
