SEATTLE --
Firefighters rescued a man who was injured at a Seattle construction site Wednesday morning, KIRO 7 Eyewitness News reported.
The 25-year-old man was working when an air hose broke, whipping him into a hole, where he landed on his stomach on a pile of dirt 40 to 50 feet down.
"It was probably just some dirt in the hose, because we blow it out every morning to be as safe as we can," construction worker Bret Frew said.
Firefighters and a paramedic quickly responded and turned the man off his stomach to better assess his injuries.
"I've been here a year and this is the first time I've ever seen anything like this happen," Frew said.
The crane at the construction site was utilized by the Seattle Fire Department to bring the man safely out of the hole.
Firefighters used their own basket and hooked it to the crane as the operator brought the injured worker to waiting paramedics.
"We constantly drill on that and so we're pretty proficient at it and we like to utilize the equipment they have if possible to bring people out of the holes. But we also have the ability to do it on our own," Battalion Chief Charles Gill said.
The man was seriously injured and transported to Harborview Medical Center with lacerations and bruises on his side.
"We take all the precautions we can, but things happen," Frew said.
The site is near the Aurora Avenue North ramp off of Denny Way. Police closed the southbound lanes of Highway 99 at the Battery Street Tunnel and rerouted traffic during the morning commute.
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